JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -The South African rand edged up on Friday after the release of monthly economic data from the central bank, revenue service agency and National Treasury.
At 1423 GMT, the rand traded at 17.11 against the dollar, about 0.2% firmer than Thursday’s close.
Data from the South African Reserve Bank showed that M3 money supply growth last month was at 7.52%, up from 6.07% in September.
Private sector credit growth for October came in at 7.26%, well over September’s 6.03% and the 6.45% estimated in a Reuters poll.
“The private sector is still grappling with a difficult trading environment due to significant global uncertainties,” said Nedbank economists.
South Africa recorded a trade surplus of 15.58 billion rand ($908.94 million) in October, revenue service figures showed on Friday.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a surplus of 20 billion rand.
“Going forward, we expect the trade account to remain in a surplus position, supported by strong precious metals prices,” said Investec economist Lara Hodes in a research note.
The National Treasury published budget balance data which showed that South Africa recorded a budget deficit of 35.83 billion rand ($2.09 billion) in October.
Next week investors will examine local data which includes GDP results, a manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) and third-quarter current account data for clues on the health of the continent’s most industrialised economy.
On the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Top-40 index was last up 0.3%.
In fixed income, government bonds strengthened, as the yield for debt maturing in 2035 fell 7.5 basis points to 8.5%.
(Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov and Anathi Madubela; Editing by Joe Bavier and Alex Richardson)
