Rand sinks as China weakness batters emerging currencies
South Africa's rand sank 2.9 percent against the dollar as commodity prices continued to fall.
NEW YORK (AFP) - South Africa s rand sank 2.9 percent against the dollar on Monday as commodity prices continued to fall, sapping investor confidence in the country s economy.
More signs of weakness in the economy of world s key commodities market, China, over the weekend further hit prices of oil and ore.
On Saturday official figures showed Chinese inflation remained about half the government s target. Prices paid at the factory gate, a guide to future inflation, sank for a 46th consecutive month.
Major currency pairs were only modestly changed from Friday, with the yen slipping back slightly against the euro and dollar. The dollar edged up to $1.0858 per euro.
The rand fell to 16.81 against the greenback, amid a general slide in emerging currencies and share markets.
It also took a toll on Canada s dollar, which lost 0.3 percent against the US dollar Monday as the price of crude oil, Canada s key foreign exchange earner, fell again.
"The renewed decline in crude oil prices may continue to dampen the appeal of the Canadian dollar," said David Song, a currency analyst at DailyFX.
China s yuan meanwhile edged higher as the People s Bank of China raised the daily reference rate -- around which the yuan can move up or down two percent -- to 6.5626 yuan per $1.0. Late in the day the yuan was at 6.5693 per dollar.
