JOHANNESBURG, March 20 (Reuters) - The South African
rand weakened against the dollar on Monday ahead of planned
protests by the Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party.
At 0743 GMT the rand traded at 18.4350 against the
dollar, 0.16% weaker than its previous close.
South African security forces on Monday said 87 people had
been arrested over the past 12 hours over public violence.
The Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party has called
for a national shutdown to protest crippling power cuts and
demand the resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa.
"This constitutes a risk event for the country and could
harm sentiment on South African markets if the outcome is bad,"
ETM Analytics said in a note.
A Reuters poll found on Monday that South Africa's Reserve
Bank will raise interest rates for the last time in this cycle
by 25 basis points on March 30, in anticipation of slower
inflation and a weak economy due to power disruptions.
Statistics South Africa will publish on Wednesday February
inflation figures , which will give more clues about
the health of Africa’s most industrialised economy.
The government's benchmark 2030 bond was stronger
in early deals, with the yield down 8 basis points to 9.955%.
(Reporting by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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