Friday, 1 November 2013

Rand on the backfoot after disappointing trade release

Trade report 01/11/2013

ZAR outlook

USD/ZAR expected range: 9.9500 – 10.1500

After enjoying a period of relative stability and firm trading the ZAR was trading near a one month low this morning and breached the R10/$ level.  The Rand is battling disappointing SA data and a greenback buoyed by upbeat US data released yesterday.  The Rand was R10.0400/$ at 08:36 GMT, 0.2% firmer than its close in New York yesterday evening.

Local news

Trade data released yesterday revealed that the deficit narrowed by a smaller margin than the markets were expecting.  The cumulative trade deficit for 2013 now stands at R126.37bn, compared to R83.6bn in 2012 meaning the ZAR will most likely be reliant on external funding for a while to come still.

International news

Strong US Chicago PMI data contributed to the good day for the USD.  The PMI rose from 55.7 to 65.9 which surprised the markets as they were expecting a reading closer to 55.0.  This, combined with the disappointing local data meant the Rand took strain and hit a low of 10.0695 – it’s weakest level since the beginning of October.


TODAYS KEY DATA POINTS (GMT):

• 09:00 SA Kagiso PMI
• 09:30 SA ILB auction (R800mn)
• 09:30 SA Naamsa vehicle sales y/y
• 18:30 SA Dep. Gov. Mminele keynote speech published on SARB website
• 09:30 GB PMI manufacturing
• 12:58 US Markit PMI manufacturing (final)
• 13:10 US Fed’s Bullard speaks on monetary policy
• 14:00 US ISM manufacturing PMI
• 15:15 US Fed’s Kocherlakota speaks


Foreign exchange South Africa  –  Let one of our professional consultants at Currency Solutions assist you. To know more about how we can help you Contact Us

Want to know where the markets are? View our Live Currency Rates

No comments:

Post a Comment