ZAR downtrend extends -ZAR.........>

EMERGING MARKETS: ZAR downtrend extends

-ZAR continues its particularly poor performance this week ahead of anticipated

industrial action in early October. This helps bulls retain bullish targets at

the YTD high at 15.4995 for USD/ZAR, with the 50-dma providing first support at

14.8733. Focus remains on the legality (or otherwise) of proposed strikes due to

take place on October 7th after the country's Labour Court ruled that banking

unions were non-compliant with striking rules.

-In Asia-Pac markets, PHP is the outperformer in spite of Thursday's rate cut as

markets see the Philippine central bank holding policy unchanged for the rest of

the year. PHP's gains come in spite of Reuters reporting that the bank are to

announce a 100bps cut to bank's reserve requirement ratios - the news was

confirmed shortly afterwards.

-Mexican trade balance and Brazilian inflation data are the sole releases on the

Friday calendar.