Reuters

South Africa’s rand weakened in early trade on Monday, as the safe-haven U.S. dollar continued to soar against a basket of major peers.

At 0732 GMT, the rand traded at 17.9925 against the dollar, 0.14% weaker than its previous close.

The dollar index was up 0.035% at 113.180.

“The dollar remains king and despite its stretched overvaluation, there is nothing to suggest a correction is imminent,” economists at ETM Analytics said in a note.

On the stock market, the Top-40 (.JTOPI) and the broader all-share (.JALSH) indexes were down around 0.5% in early trade.

The government’s benchmark 2030 bond was weaker in early deals, with the yield up 11 basis points to 10.860%.