The rand has massively underperformed over the past week, breaching the psychological R19.00/US$1 level on Thursday (11 May).
Even on a YTD and one-year basis, the local currency’s performance has been disappointing.
This rand weakness is occurring when global interest rate hikes are slowing and the US dollar is losing some ground.
The rand is weakening against all the major currencies.
Eskom remains a weighty issue as the SA economy sits in the dark and politicians fight to maintain turf and the status quo.
In addition, SA’s greylisting was a clear own goal and should be considered an embarrassment.
And playing war games with the Russian navy and inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to the BRICS summit in August – despite an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant (SA is a signatory to the ICC) – was always likely to alienate the country’s trade partners and investors.
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