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Rand stabilises but Greece still poses risk

Johannesburg - The rand was off the previous day's two-week lows against the dollar in early trade on Tuesday, helped by short-covering from oversold levels but still vulnerable to a weak domestic growth outlook and Greece's debt woes.

The rand barely moved on Reserve Bank data showing that the private sector credit demand increased by 9.53% year-on-year in May compared with 9.35% in April.

At 09:22, the rand was at R12.2450/$, barely changed from Monday's close at 12.2475.  

The local unit fell 1% to 12.4100 on Monday, its weakest since June 17, as the threat of a debt default by Greece sapped market appetite for risky assets.

READ: Greece will not pay IMF loan due on Tuesday - govt official

"The rand looks likely to stabilise as the panic over Greece recedes, although the ongoing swings in euro/dollar creates some risks," Rand Merchant Bank currency analyst John Cairns said.

On the local front, a wider-than-expected trade deficit could also add pressure on the local currency, traders said.

The South African Revenue Service was due to release the data at 14:00.

Government bonds edged up slightly after Monday's heavy losses, with the yield for the paper maturing in 2026 dipping half a basis point to 8.345%.

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Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.0%
Rand - Pound
23.90
+0.0%
Rand - Euro
20.41
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.33
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.0%
Platinum
908.05
+1.2%
Palladium
1,014.94
+1.3%
Gold
2,232.75
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Silver
24.95
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Brent Crude
87.00
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Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
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Resource 10
57,251
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Industrial 25
103,936
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Financial 15
16,502
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