* Rand rangebound in lacklustre year-end trade
* Bonds hold firm, boosted by lack of new supply
JOHANNESBURG Dec 23 (Reuters) – South Africa’s rand
edged higher against the dollar and government bonds were also
firmer in thin trading on Friday as domestic markets closed
early ahead of an extended weekend.
The bond exchange has been finishing earlier than usual as
the year draws to a close and Johannesburg currency traders also
closed early at around 1000 GMT on Friday, ahead of the
Christmas weekend.
Local financial markets will be closed on Monday and Tuesday
for public holidays.
By 1343 GMT, the rand traded at 8.1585 against the
greenback, up 0.42 percent from the previous close of 8.1930,
but off this week’s high of 8.07 reached on Wednesday.
“Dollar/rand has bounced between 8.1000-8.2000, with
euro/dollar going nowhere fast in increasingly thin markets,”
said Christopher Shiells, an emerging markets analyst at
Informa Global Markets.
Government bonds edged higher, partly supported by lack of
new supply after the Treasury suspended its weekly primary
auctions until the new year.
The yield on the short-dated paper dipped half a
basis point to a two week low of 6.755 percent and that for the
15-year bond shed 1.5 basis points to 8.52 percent.
Continued…
