Rand steady in slow trade

The rand was steady in quiet trade at midday, eyeing movements in the euro.

At 11.45am the rand was bid at R7.55 to the dollar, R9.36 to the euro and R11.18 to the pound. The euro was bid at $1.2378 from $1.2312 overnight.

"Trade is quiet at the moment, with no drivers. We're still eyeing the euro and are in a range of 7.54 to 7.64 against the dollar," a local dealer said.

Dow Jones Newswires reports that the euro jumped against the dollar in European trading on Thursday after Spain's bond auction attracted good demand, helping to allay fears that the country could be the next in the euro zone to need bailing out.

The 16-nation currency rose by 0.8% from its lowest point of the day against the dollar amid relief that the Spanish Treasury managed to sell a combined €3.479 billion in long-term government bonds at its latest auction.

"The strong demand for Spanish bonds should help restore confidence," said Aro Razafindrakola, an analyst at Societe Generale in Paris.

Still, concern about the country's debt situation hasn't been eradicated and this remains a source of tension for the single currency, particularly as the International Monetary Fund is speaking to Spanish officials this week.