MARKETS RAND AND STOCKS ADVANCE

THE RAND firmed yesterday, lifted by improved risk appetite globally as a coronavirus vaccine trial was back on track and investors looked forward to key central bank meetings locally and abroad.

At 5pm, the rand was 0.46 percent firmer at R16.68 to the dollar, compared to last week’s close of R16.75 in New York.

Over the weekend, drugmaker AstraZeneca resumed its British clinical trials of its Covid-19 vaccine, one of the most advanced in development, reigniting hopes a solution to the contagious virus could be found soon.

The rand was just shy of its firmest levels since late July and the R16.50 technical resistance level that traders see as a short-term target for rand bulls that could spark a run toward R16 in the medium term.

The greenback slipped, weighed by expectations that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) would reiterate its policy of lower lending rates for longer.

The Fed’s policy announcement comes tomorrow, followed by the Bank of Japan and the Bank of England’s policy decisions on Thursday.

The local central bank also decides rates this week.

Markets see a 50-50 chance it could cut rates again after dropping them 300 basis points this year to record lows.

Bonds gained, with the yield on the benchmark government instrument due in 2030 down 8 basis points to 9.28 percent.

In equities, stocks were also lifted by the vaccine hopes.

The JSE all share index closed 0.43 percent higher to 56 327.05 points, while the Top40 index rose 0.51 percent to 51 976.82 points.

“Investors are reacting positively to every progress made in the fight against C0vid-19,” Milan Cutkovic, market analyst at AxiCorp said in a note. I Reuters