JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -The South African rand slipped against a stronger dollar on Thursday, as investors bet on a relatively hawkish Federal Reserve and worries about rising COVID-19 cases in China persisted.
At 1604 GMT, the rand traded at 17.4350 against the dollar, 0.98% weaker than its previous close.
The dollar climbed on Thursday after U.S. retail sales data for October, released on Wednesday, came in stronger than expected and dented hopes of tamer interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
The South African currency has mainly taken its cue from global drivers recently, rallying strongly last week after a lower-than-expected U.S. inflation reading.
On the stock market, the Top-40 index closed 0.59% lower while the broader all-share fell 0.62% in afternoon deals.
The government’s benchmark 2030 bond was almost unchanged, with the yield down 1 basis point at 10.430%.
On Friday, investor attention will shift to scheduled reviews of South Africa’s sovereign credit ratings by S&P Global and Moody’s.
(Reporting by Alexander Winning and Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Toby Chopra)
