Covid? What Covid? From drastic rule changes to intensifying war threat and breather for the rand

The onus, now more than ever, is on us to be responsible. Judging from the latest government Covid-19 restrictions amid the ongoing global pandemic, it seems Covid is as good as over in South Africa. The government last night announced that owing to a slowdown in infections and an increase in the level of vaccinations, Cabinet has approved several changes to the adjusted alert Level 1 lockdown regulations, the biggest of which is that those who test positive for Covid without symptoms no longer need to isolate. And the isolation period for those with symptoms has been cut by three days to just seven, but their close contacts will not be required to isolate unless they themselves also develop symptoms.

The latest move comes after South Africa drastically changed the rules on self-isolation in December by doing away with contact tracing, and saying that asymptomatic carriers would face no restrictions. Those rules were internationally hailed, before being withdrawn again just five days later.

Another sudden measure that could have a significant impact on learners’ lives is that all schools will return to daily attendance with no need for social distancing. With other parts of the world battling a new omicron strain and a large part of the population still not vaxxed – 46.55% of the adult population received their shots, while about two-thirds of those between 18 and 34 have not yet been vaccinated – let’s see how long the new rules will last!

Across the waters, a high-stakes showdown between Russia and the US is brewing after Washington and Moscow clashed over Ukraine at the UN Security Council. The US has urged the families of its government employees in Belarus to leave the country while threatening to slap sanctions on wealthy Russian oligarchs if the ex-Soviet state is attacked.

In the markets, the rand and its emerging market peers are taking a breather as the dollar lost steam after Fed officials last night said the central bank’s policy path after an expected March rate hike will be driven by data. The local unit is currently trading at R15.36 after starting around the R15.60-mark yesterday.

“We believe that the rally from last week was a bit overextended and that the elastic had to snap back a little. The US dollar is driving the rand and other EM currencies, and any Fed news and any headline news could affect sentiment. The critical event for the rand this week is the US non-farm payroll number that will be released on Friday,” comments TreasuryONE.

On the commodities front, gold is benefiting from the weaker dollar, with the yellow metal trading back above $1,800/oz. Platinum and palladium were last quoted at $1,025 and $2,339 respectively, while Brent Crude dipped below $90 a barrel to last trade at $89.63.

Here’s a roundup of the world’s top and most interesting headlines:

SA Business

Current and ex-Treasury officials: State Capture nearly destroyed South Africa – Daily Maverick

Steinhoff: Releasing probe into accounting fraud would undermine case against Jooste, others – Fn24

Another blow for Peter Moyo as high court throws out his demand for R250m in damages – Daily Maverick

Global Business

Overtaxed: Public accountants are deducting themselves from their jobs – The Verge

New York Times buys viral game Wordle for seven-figure sum – The Guardian

‘Britain’s Bill Gates’ is facing extradition to the U.S.: Here’s all you need to know – CNBC

Markets

Asian markets rise as traders buoyed by another Wall St rally – AFP

Dollar idles after tumble from 19-month peak – Reuters