JOHANNESBURG: South Africa's rand weakened on Wednesday, giving up earlier gains despite the dollar treading water, amid global trade tensions before a US deadline to impose tariffs on Chinese imports.
At 1515 GMT, the rand traded at 13.7350 per dollar, 0.46 percent weaker than its close on Tuesday.
Worried about the impact of a full scale trade war, investors have been nervous about the Friday deadline when Washington is set to impose tariffs on $34 billion worth of goods from China. Beijing has vowed to match any moves with tariffs on US products.
"With trade tensions escalating by the day, market caution is set to remain a recurring theme moving forward," FXTM research analyst Lukman Otunuga said. "Emerging market currencies are likely to be caught in the crossfire of the escalating tensions with the rand falling into the category."
In fixed income, the yield for the benchmark paper due in 2026 fell 9 basis points to 8.75 percent.
On the bourse, the Top-40 index was up 0.17 percent to 51,374 points and the broader All-Share index rose 0.19 percent to 57,600.
The gold index was up 1 percent as AngloGold Ashanti rose 2.4 percent to 118.26 rand, followed by Gold Fields. It gained 0.8 percent to 48.78 rand after gold prices rose to a one-week high on Wednesday, rebounding from a seven-month low in the previous session.
Among the biggest fallers, Healthcare provider Netcare was down 2.5 percent to 27.70 rand and miner BHP Billiton 2.77 percent to 295.65 rand.
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