Rand trades firmer overnight

Published Nov 23, 2020

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JOHANNESBURG - The South African currency steadied ahead of pivotal credit rating reviews, propped up by global risk sentiment surrounding vaccine trials according to NKC Research.

The downgrade by Moody’s was expected, and S&P maintaining its position was also a likely outcome given the rating it currently assigns, but the unexpected downgrade by Fitch Ratings and the negative outlooks by both Fitch and Moody’s are cause for concern.

These agencies are clearly unconvinced that the government will be able to stick to its fiscal plan and doubt the efficacy of the country’s recovery strategy.

At the close of local trade, the rand quoted 0.31 percent stronger at R15.37/$, after trading in range of R15.31/$ - R15.46/$. The rand traded firmer overnight. The expected range of the rand against the dollar today is R15.20/$ - R15.50/$.

Brent crude oil

Brent oil prices looked set to bank a third-consecutive weekly gain on Friday thanks to successful Covid-19 vaccine trials. That said, renewed lockdowns in several countries kept a lid on gains. At the close of local trade, benchmark Brent crude futures quoted 0.66 percent higher at $44.47pb. Crude prices traded higher during Asian trade this morning.

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