JOHANNESBURG Aug 27 (Reuters) – South Africa’s rand was weaker against the dollar and bond yields edged higher on Monday, weighed by a combination of global risk wariness and concerns over the ailing local economy.
The yield on the three year benchmark bond added two basis points to 5.59 percent in early trade and that for 14-year paper rose 3.5 basis points to 7.605 percent.
The rand was down 0.36 percent at 8.43 by 0704 GMT compared with Friday’s close.
Mounting labour tension in the platinum mining sector after violence left 44 people dead at Lonmin’s Marikana mine this month had exacerbated concerns around the local economy’s structural problems, Rand Merchant Bank said in a note.
“There is a risk of ongoing rand weakness, even if global markets provide a reasonably good backdrop. Resistance on dollar/rand is at 8.42, a break of which opens up 8.50,” RMB said in its market note.
Growth data due out on Tuesday, if weaker than expected, could reinforce market expectations for another rate cut to aid growth after the Reserve Bank unexpectedly trimmed the benchmark repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.0 percent last month.
Foreign rate agreements are pricing in a 60 percent likelihood of another reduction over the next six months, market watchers said.
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