South African Rand Weakens

Yesterday was very quiet on the data front from the UK which saw markets do very little. Markit Eurozone Manufacturing came in better than expected where the figures showed growth in production and new orders in Europe with notable boosts in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands. Later in the day the US ISM Manufacturing data release came in line with market expectations and failing to give the day something to talk about at least.

The South African rand continued to weaken yesterday after South African president fired finance minister Pravin Gordhan last week and has now been replaced by someone unknown which could certainly see the rand weaken further due to political unrest in South Africa. This is a great buying opportunity if you have any upcoming requirements.

Today we have another quiet day from the UK with the only economic data release of note comes in at 12:30 PM with the US trade balance and US Factory orders at 14:00. Later this week we have FOMC minutes on Wednesday, Trump’s first meeting with Chinese President and key data releases on Friday with the Unemployment rate and non-farm payroll which are hoping to better figures than the previous month.