JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South Africa’s rand firmed on Friday after President Cyril Ramaphosa said his government would launch a second wave of reforms to try to boost economic growth.
At 1531 GMT, the rand traded at 18.37 against the U.S. dollar, about 0.3% firmer than its previous close. The rand has gained about 1.8% since its close last Friday.
Ramaphosa, in his annual State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Thursday, promised reforms aimed at lifting South Africa’s growth above 3%, by boosting struggling state companies like power utility Eskom and logistics group Transnet and investing in infrastructure.
“The one thing the SONA did not do was weaken the ZAR. On the contrary, it has been a very strong week for the ZAR,” said ETM Analytics in a research note.
“It may have started the week on the defensive but appears to be ending it firmly on the front foot (and) now looks set to target levels closer to 18.4000 ahead of the weekend,” the note added.
The rand tumbled on Monday, but managed to stage a recovery, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would cut off funding for South Africa because he said, without citing evidence, that the country was confiscating land.
Ramaphosa said on Thursday that his country “will not be bullied”.
On the stock market, the Top-40 index closed about 0.5% higher.
South Africa’s benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker, with the yield up 1.5 basis points to 9.065%.
(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov and Tannur Anders, Editing by Jane Merriman, Kirsten Donovan)
