Rand Under Pressure, Local Data In Focus

Spot USD/ZAR trades at 18.8336, around 320 pips higher on the session, with bulls looking for a move through Oct 26 high of 19.2710. On the flip side, bears see Nov 15 low of 18.1117 as their initial target.

• South Africa S&P Global PMI improved to 50.0 from 48.9 prior, with the accompanying commentary noting that "input prices rose at the softest rate for nearly three years, with inflation slowing markedly for the second month running. According to surveyed firms, this was mainly due to an improvement in the exchange rate versus the US dollar, which was fairly mild but nonetheless helped lead to a softer rise in purchase costs."
• The latest GDP report will be published at 09:30GMT/11:30SAST. The economy is expected to have shrunk 0.1% Y/Y in Q3, while seasonally adjusted growth may have flatlined on a Q/Q basis.
• The BBG Commodity Index has edged higher this morning, while the precious metals subindex has added 0.3%. SAGB yields are slightly higher across the curve, with 10-year breakeven inflation rate last seen at 6.54%.