Johannesburg - South Africa's rand weakened against the dollar on Monday with investors concerned about and the killing of a miner at Lonmin's Marikana mine and overall sentiment hit by escalating tensions in Ukraine.
The rand fell to 10.3735 to the dollar at 17:57 SA time, off a 10.3445 close in New York on Friday.
Dealers said the dollar looked oversold and the rand was likely to retreat further from last week's high levels.
“Dollar/rand still trades below the 200 day moving average at 10.412, but given prevailing risk factors in the form of Ukraine tensions, and with the RSI approaching the key 30 level, we are cautious to expect a pullback will extend further,” Anisha Arora of 4Cast said.
Domestically investors' fears about violence in the South African platinum strike were exacerbated when at least one worker was killed as he reported for work at Lonmin's Marikana mine.
Lonmin is attempting to end a four-month strike that has also hit rivals Anglo American Platinum and Impala Platinum, who produce a combined 40 percent of global platinum output.
The companies have sidestepped the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) by presenting their wage offers directly to employees.
The police said more officers would be deployed to the platinum belt, with Lonmin hoping for more striking workers to return to work on Wednesday.
Government bonds tracked the rand weaker and pulled back from multi-month highs.
The 2026 benchmark yield climbed 4.5 basis points to 8.165 percent, and the 2015 note rose by the same margin to 6.585 percent. - Reuters