Money SA economy
The rand was range bound in midday trade on Wednesday tracking the euro.
At 11.57am the rand was bid at R7.50 to the dollar, R9.53 to the euro and R11.18 to the pound. The euro was bid at $1.2694 from $1.2630 previously.
A local trader said: "The rand is currently trading in a range, watching the developments in the eurozone economies. The eurozone GDP numbers out earlier today were not really expected to impact on the performance of the euro since they are backward looking. However, the US trade balance out later in the day may have an effect on the euro against the US dollar.”
A promise by Spanish Prime Minister Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to cut public-sector wages by 5% this year and freeze them next year helped to lift market sentiment, which earlier in the day was still being knocked by fears that Greece could still default on its debt.
The European Central Bank has been forced to defend its policy U-turn over the weekend, in which it extended its credit easing through the purchase of sovereign debt.
