* Rand nears three-year low vs dollar
* Bonds retreat, yields edge up
JOHANNESBURG Oct 4 (Reuters) – South Africa’s rand extended
losses against the dollar on Thursday, hitting an 11-week low as
waves of strikes across the mining industry continued to dent
sentiment toward local assets.
By 1528 GMT, the rand was trading at 8.5025 versus
the greenback, down 0.97 percent from the New York close of
8.4210. It hit an 11-week low of 8.5490 earlier in the session.
“Given the current environment locally with regards to all
the strikes and violence, it seems like there is an expectation
of further weakening on the rand,” said Warrick Butler, a
currency trader at Standard Bank.
“The move up to 8.55 has been a combination of stop-losses
being triggered in the market as well as offshore demand for the
dollar.”
The local currency shrugged off gains made by the euro
against the dollar after the European Central Bank kept its
benchmark interest rate at a record low of 0.75 percent at a
policy meeting.
The rand often tracks the euro, the currency of its largest
trading partner.
Fallout from the unrest in the mines, which account for 6
percent of GDP, has put pressure on the rand, which has fallen
to near three-year lows against the dollar.
Continued…
