JOHANNESBURG, April 25 (Reuters) - The South African
rand slipped in early trade on Tuesday against a slightly
stronger dollar, as a central bank leading business cycle
indicator fell.
At 0645 GMT, the rand traded at 18.1750 against the dollar , about 0.2% weaker than its closing level on Monday.
The dollar index , which measures the greenback
against six rivals, was up around 0.1%.
The South African Reserve Bank's leading indicator for
February decreased 0.7% month on month, falling for
the third consecutive month.
The indicator collects data on vehicle sales, business
confidence, money supply and other factors to gauge the outlook
for Africa's most industrialised economy.
Rand moves could be volatile later this week as upcoming
public holidays mean many traders will be away from their desks
from Wednesday's close until next Tuesday.
Globally, the investor mood was cautious in a busy week for
corporate earnings and economic data.
Markets will look to coming U.S. data releases for clues
about the Federal Reserve's next policy moves and are also
grappling with financial stability concerns highlighted by
recent turmoil in U.S. and Swiss banks.
South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was
little changed in early deals, the yield up 0.5 basis points at
10.185%.
(Reporting by Tannur Anders
Editing by Alexander Winning)
