(Updates prices to reflect afternoon trade)
JOHANNESBURG, Feb 16 (Reuters) - South Africa's rand
weakened on Thursday after President Cyril Ramaphosa defended
his decision to appoint a minister of electricity to try to end
crippling power cuts.
At 1609 GMT, the rand traded at 18.1500 against the
dollar, 0.68% weaker than its previous close.
Some lawmakers said the appointment would add a layer of
bureaucracy as state utility Eskom is overseen by the public
enterprises minister while the energy minister is responsible
for procuring additional power generation capacity.
"(The power crisis) requires the undivided attention of a
political principal who does not need to split their time and
energies among different important responsibilities," Ramaphosa
said, responding to a debate by lawmakers on his State of the
Nation Address.
On the stock market, the Top-40 and the broader
all-share indexes closed about 1% higher, mostly helped
by gains in the resources index .
The government's benchmark 2030 bond was weaker
in afternoon trade, with the yield up 4.5 basis points at
10.025%.
(Reporting by Nellie Peyton and Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by
Robert Birsel)
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