The rand was flat against the US dollar on Thursday morning as global concern about the US debt ceiling weighed on the local currency.
“Global risk appetite has been tentative in recent days‚ due to lingering concern about the US debt ceiling and the outcome of the fourth-quarter 2012 US corporate earnings season‚ which has provided a safe-haven bid for the dollar‚” Absa Capital said in a note on Thursday.
At 8.36am‚ the rand was bid at R8.6045 to the US dollar from its previous close of R8.5999 on Wednesday. The local currency was bid at R11.2313 to the euro from its previous close of R11.2201 and at R13.7692 against sterling from R13.7621 before.
The euro was steady against the dollar‚ bid at $1.3052 from its overnight close of $1.3053.
Absa Capital said: “However‚ this morning’s encouraging Chinese trade report‚ which showed a strong rebound in Chinese imports and exports‚ should be conducive to a risk-on trading environment‚ due to the better global growth implications associated with such an outcome.” - I-Net Bridge