The rand has had a great week and on Friday breached the R17 mark against the US dollar.
The dollar was weak on Thursday after US inflation data showed some decline. This illustrated that the Federal Reserve could decrease interest rates next month.
As a result, the rand strengthened and broke through the R18 threshold and was trading at R17.99 at the close of business on Thursday.
According to Reuters, this is the first time the rand has broken out of the R18 chokehold since early July.
The rand was trading at around R17.98 at 8.03am on Friday against the dollar.
The ZAR was trading at around R19.75 to the euro and around R23.15 to the pound.
Unemployment figures
Earlier this week, Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) released its Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for the second quarter (Q2) of 2024 and noted that SA's official unemployment rate has increased from 32.9% in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024 to 33.5% in Q2.
While looking at the period from January to March of 2024, StatsSA noted that there were 8.2 million unemployed South Africans. This number has risen to 8.3 million in the period from April to June 2024.
The data showed that unemployment in SA is at its highest rate since 2022.
Business confidence
Despite these shameful numbers, there is some hope on the horizon as business confidence in South Africa has recovered somewhat in June and July after a sharp decline as the country led up to the May elections.
Research from the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) showed this week that its business confidence index rose to 109.1 in July, up from 109.0 in June and 107.8 in May.
The body also acknowledged the positive impact the Government of National Unity has had on SA’s Business Confidence Index.
The body noted that there were expectations of improvement in business sentiment after it became clear that a coalition government would be formed.
“The broader representation and accountability in government have created an opportunity for efficient economic expansion, more employment opportunities, and increased inclusiveness,” SACCI said.
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