South Africa's rand firmed against the US dollar on Tuesday, helped by a weaker greenback as optimism about easing trade tensions between the United States and China faded, while stocks fell due to profit-taking. At 1535 GMT, the rand was 0.35% firmer at 14.0900 per dollar, as the US currency slipped from two-week highs.
The rand had gained strongly in the previous month along with other emerging assets as the greenback slumped over the likelihood of lower US lending rates. On the bourse, stocks weakened with the Top-40 index down 0.71% to 52,093 points while the broader All-Share Index fell 0.65% to 58,095 points.
In fixed income, the yield on the benchmark 10-year government issue added 2.5 basis points to 8.15%. A trade truce between the United States and China on the sidelines of the G20 summit over the weekend had calmed fears and boosted the dollar, but negotiations are ongoing.
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