JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -The South African rand and stocks rose on Tuesday as the dollar weakened after data showed a further decline in U.S. inflation, raising the prospect that the pace of Federal Reserve interest rate hikes will ease.
At 1548 GMT, the rand traded at 17.2400 against the dollar, 2.2% stronger than its Monday close.
At home, South Africa’s ruling African National Congress stopped an impeachment process from being launched against President Cyril Ramaphosa, as most of its lawmakers followed party instructions to vote against a probe report on him.
The dollar index, measuring the U.S. unit’s value versus six major currencies, fell around 1% to 103.99.
ETM Analytics said in a note the rand had pared back its earlier losses due to a wholesale sell-off in the dollar.
Statistics South Africa data showed on Tuesday total mining output fell 10.4% year on year in October compared to a revised 5.1% decrease in September.
Other data showed business confidence rose in November, helped by an increase in new vehicle sales, share prices on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and manufacturing output.
On the JSE, the Top-40 index ended 2.05% higher at 69,675 points, while the broader all-share rose 1.9% to 75,835 points.
The government’s benchmark 2030 bond was slightly stronger, with the yield down 1 basis points to 10.360%.
(Reporting by Alexander Winning and Anait MiridzhanianEditing by Mark Potter)
