JOHANNESBURG: The South African rand was little changed in early trade on Friday after a volatile week. The rand traded at 17.6250 against the dollar at 0625 GMT, not far from its previous closing level of 17.6175.

It was also trading near last week’s close of 17.6125. In the early part of the week the rand was pressured by expectations for aggressive monetary policy tightening by the US Federal Reserve, which delivered a 75 basis point interest rate hike on Wednesday.

It recovered lost ground on Thursday, however, when the South African Reserve Bank also hiked rates by 75 basis points.

South African rand on back foot before inflation numbers, Fed

The South African government’s benchmark 2030 bond was a touch weaker in early deals, the yield rising 1 basis point to 10.60%.

Later on Friday, the government will auction inflation-linked bonds and Treasury bills.