Johannesburg - The rand recovered against the dollar on Tuesday, but gains were limited as demand for riskier currencies as well as safe-haven commodities waned.
At 5pm, the rand was bid at R13.5776 to the greenback, 3.39c softer than at the same time on Monday. The unit had fallen to a session low of R13.71 before staging a recovery.
“Commodities continue to grind lower, oil and gold specifically, and this is not helping our currency,” Standard Bank chief currency trader, Warrick Butler, wrote in a note.
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Gold fell on Tuesday to its lowest since mid-March as France’s election of centrist Emmanuel Macron as its next president reduced demand for bullion as a safe haven.
Government bonds weakened, and the yield for the benchmark instrument due in 2026 increased.