JOHANNESBURG: The South African rand weakened on Monday after surging coronavirus cases in the country topped the one million mark, raising fresh concerns about the pandemic's impact on the economy.
At 1530 GMT the rand was 0.7% weaker at 14.6000 per dollar, from a close of 14.5000 on Friday.
South Africa's total cumulative coronavirus cases crossed the one million mark on Dec. 27 with 26,735 deaths, the health ministry said on Sunday.
Bonds were a touch firmer, with the yield on the benchmark 2030 government issue down 1 basis point to 8.76%.
Shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) closed lower, dragged down by index heavyweight Naspers which fell on news of stricter scrutiny by the Chinese government on technology companies.
Naspers' subsidiary Prosus NV holds a 31% stake in Chinese social media and online gaming company Tencent.
South Africa's benchmark FTSE/JSE all-share index ended 0.31% lower at 53,956 points, while the blue-chip top 40 companies index fell 0.29% to 59,006 points.
Naspers represents close to a quarter of the local bourse. Naspers shares dropped 3.78%, while Prosus shares shed 3.2%.
Shares of most Chinese technology and internet companies crashed on
Investors fear that the second wave of infections, likely driven by a variant of the virus discovered in the country earlier this month, will trigger tougher lockdown restrictions that may affect economic activity.
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