The South African Rand has fallen further against the US Dollar after it was hit by renewed concerns over the worsening labour unrest in the country. Despite the worries some economists are forecasting that the Rand could find some support after a month of sharp selling.
Adding to the concerns over labour unrest were reports that a unionist member was shot dead and another wounded at a Lonmin owned platinum mine close to the town of Markiana, 70 miles north of Johannesburg.
According to National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) spokesman Mxhasi Sithethi, two men opened fire outside the NUM offices on Monday.
He said; “The unionist ran back to the office. They followed him and killed him.” The attackers are then believed to have then shot the union treasurer at least six times when he confronted the attackers.
The incident is believed to be yet another instance of union turf violence with the NUM regularly coming into conflict with its rival union the AMCU.
This latest incident follows on from Monday’s news that Glencore Xstrata had fired up to 1000 workers who had embarked on wildcat strikes last week.
The ongoing unrest is proving to be very damaging for South Africa’s economy as disruption to mining operations heavily impacts its exports. South Africa is the world’s leading supplier of platinum after all, as well as mining many other precious metals.
Despite concerns over the unrest, the Rand could find some support as economists say that the currency has been sharply oversold in recent weeks and that a correction was due.
“For the first time in weeks, short-term risks are now evenly distributed. Sentiment is still nervous and any negative news could send the unit running again,” John Cairns, a currency strategist at Rand Merchant Bank, said in a note to investors.
The currency could find some support if the latest business confidence index for May (due for release at 11:30am GMT) shows signs of a strong recovery. Worse than expected figures are sure to weigh upon the currency further.
Current South African (ZAR) Exchange Rates
The US Dollar/South African Rand Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 9.7512
The Pound Sterling/South African Rand Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 14.9160
The Euro/South African Rand Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 12.7487
The Australian Dollar/South African Rand Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 9.4330
The New Zealand Dollar/South African Rand Exchange Rate is currently in the region of 7.8189
The Canadian Dollar/South African Rand Exchange Rate is currently trading in the region of 9.4456
(Correct as of 09:35 am GMT)
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