Later in the day, President Cyril Ramaphosa will respond to
lawmakers' debate on his state of the nation address, during
which he declared a national state of disaster over the power
shortages.
On the stock market, the Top-40 index and the
broader all-share were up about 0.9% in early trade.
The government's benchmark 2030 bond was stronger
in early deals, with the yield down 3.5 basis points at 9.945%.
(Reporting by Nellie Peyton; Editing by Robert Birsel)
JOHANNESBURG, Feb 16 (Reuters) - South Africa's rand was
flat in early trade on Thursday, despite gains in other emerging
market currencies as the U.S. dollar fell.
At 0717 GMT, the rand traded at 18.0300 against the
dollar, compared to its previous close of 18.0275.
The dollar was down about .08% against a basket of global
currencies , as investors showed a higher risk appetite on
signs the overall global growth outlook is improving following a
slew of strong U.S. economic data.
"This morning the rand is trading unchanged at 18.03 despite
its emerging market peers having firmed from yesterday," said
Andre Cilliers, a currency strategist at TreasuryONE.
Recent warnings from ratings agencies Fitch and Moody's
about the impact of South Africa's power crisis on its growth
prospects have raised concerns about a possible downgrade and
weighed on the rand's performance, he said.
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