Rand is looking to close below R17.20
While the Rand looked under pressure in early morning trade with the local unit testing the R17.35 level. The Rand made an about-turn since hitting R17.35 and is currently trading at R17.20. The peculiar thing was that the Rand strengthened in the wake of a stronger US dollar, with the greenback currently trading at 1.0810. The belief is that there is a bit of profit-taking in the market, and the Rand has benefitted from it. Commodities are also on the back foot, which only gives credence to the fact that there is some profit-taking in the market, as lower commodity prices normally do not bode well for the Rand.
Looking forward to next week
The Rand has had a difficult week, with the unit starting the week around R16.70, and local events have started to weigh on the Rand. At the back end of the week, we haven't seen any more local issues that could impact the Rand further. Next week the market will be getting direction from the market sentiment, and the "risk-off" sentiment seems to be petering out at the moment. With that in mind, we expect a slow start next week, with most of the attention being paid to the Q4 GDP numbers out of the US on Thursday.
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