* Rand weakens, but reduces its losses
* Spanish bond yields jump on fiscal fears
JOHANNESBURG, April 16 (Reuters) – South Africa’s rand
weakened against the dollar on Monday as it tracked the euro,
which hit a two-month low as a rise in the yields on Spain’s
government bonds signalled fresh worries about the country’s
fragile economic state.
The rand was 0.15 percent weaker against the
dollar at 1538 GMT, trading at 7.9656 from New York’s Friday
close of 7.955.
Spanish 10-year government bond yields jumped above 6
percent for the first time this year on Monday as concerns over
the country’s ability to keep its finances under control
surfaced again.
The rand was caught in a selling mode late in the session,
but not more than other currencies in the list of 20 emerging
markets tracked by Reuters.
“Despite the rising global risk aversion with the euro under
pressure and Spanish yields above the psychological 6 percent
level, the rand found some relief in that equities were holding
well through the day,” said Anisha Arora, analyst at 4Cast.
“However the sudden sell off in SP futures has weighed on
rand crosses in the afternoon, renewing upside pressure on
dollar/rand.” added Arora.
Government bonds were mostly unchanged. The 2015
yield was flat at 6.72 percent and that on the on the 2026 issue
slipped half a basis point to 8.434 percent.
(Reporting by Vuyani Ndaba; Editing by Jon Herskovitz)
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