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Familiar Headwinds Weigh on Rand, South African Equities Extend Losses

ZAR
Familiar headwinds (greenback strength, higher US yields, weakness in the commodities complex) continue to weigh on the rand Wednesday morning, with USDZAR seen trading through both the 50- and 200-DMAs earlier today. Initial resistance is found at 18.7444, the Dec 26 high, while key resistance lies further out at 19.1386, the Dec 11 high.
  • Of note, the JALSH equity index has shed 1.25% this morning. That brings this week’s losses to 2.7%, with the index having now pared the majority of the Dec 27 rally. Losses of South African equities exceed that of the major US and European benchmarks, with a recovery in some of China’s key tech stocks unable to offer any reprieve.
  • The moves in China followed a Reuters report that Beijing removed a top official who oversaw the nation’s gaming industry, which may signal the government is trying to cool a backlash against new regulations that triggered an $80 billion rout across the sector.
  • Domestically, several local papers have flagged political uncertainty as key risk for 2024 which is expected to hinder equity performance. Moreover, Eskom have reimplemented load-shedding following the longest spell of no power cuts for 18 months.

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