Money SA economy
The rand maintained its front foot momentum in afternoon play on Monday, amid an under pressure dollar as the euro pushed to a three-month high against the greenback.
At 3.33pm local time the rand was bid at R7.25 to the dollar, R9.51 to the euro and R11.47 to the pound.
A local dealer said: "The rand held through 7.30 against the dollar at the back end of last week, and is now in a position to test the low 7.20's. The dollar has come under pressure, which is also fuelling what is a strong rand."
Dow Jones Newswires reports that the euro rose above $1.31 to a three-month high Monday after better-than-expected euro-zone manufacturing data helped the region's sovereign debt problems to continue to fade into the background as investors focused on economic growth.
The dollar fell to its lowest level since late April against a trade-weighted basket of its competitors as investors shifted into currencies closely tied to the pace of global growth, such as the Australian dollar, which gained more than 0.75% against the greenback.
The dollar is slipping against its competitors as investors have "looked elsewhere at better growth prospects," said Andrew Wilkinson, senior market analyst at Interactive Brokers.
