JOHANNESBURG: The South African rand firmed against the U.S. dollar on Friday as global financial markets reeled in wake of the Swiss National Bank's surprise decision to abandon its currency cap.
The local unit clawed back losses after falling as much as 1 percent following state power-utility Eskom's admission that rolling power outages would continue for the next three years.
By 0620 GMT the rand was 0.07 percent firmer at 11.5490 per dollar, temporarily shaking-off persistent worries about the economy's ability to grow in the face of entrenched fundamental weaknesses.
A Reuters poll of 33 economists predicted growth of 2.3 percent this year for Africa's second-largest economy, down from 2.5 percent predicted one month ago.
But volatility in European currency markets stoked by the SNB's move pushed the rand firmer, along with other emerging market currencies, as investors sought relief from uncertain conditions overseas.
Government bonds were flat in early trade, with benchmark issue due in 2026 unmoved at 7.405 percent.
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