Rand lifts most in six weeks

The rand led major currency gains, strengthening the most in six weeks, after South Africa’s current account deficit unexpectedly narrowed. The currency advanced 1 percent to R10.7305 per dollar by 6pm in Johannesburg, the biggest gain among 16 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg and the steepest advance on a closing basis since May 8. That pared a 1.5 percent fall in the previous three days after Standard & Poor’s downgraded the nation’s debt on Friday and Fitch Ratings lowered its outlook to negative from stable. “In the near term this will help reduce its external vulnerability,” said David Faulkner, an economist at HSBC Holdings. – Bloomberg