Declines against the South African Rand extended for the Pound Sterling (GBP ZAR) on Friday after a computer error caused a ‘flash crash’ widely reported in the media.
- The Pound to South African Rand exchange rate today: +0.74 per cent higher at 1 GBP = 17.15744.
- GBP/ZAR Exchange Rate News Pound Sterling to Rand close to two-year low
- ZAR Makes Solid Gains on GBP Weakness Gordhan upbeat on South African economy
- GBP tumbled on Asian trading error Huge losses seen for Pound Sterling
- GBP/ZAR exchange rate forecast: Brexit fears continued to motivate GBP sell-off
Foreign exchange markets have seen the Pound to South African Rand exchange rate continue to plummet on Monday afternoon, taking the pairing back towards the lows it saw last Friday – and its lowest levels since 2013.
Sterling could continue to flounder until Thursday’s session – or longer as the currency is being perceived as being increasingly politics-correlated
Comments from the head of the CBI have put the Pound under fresh pressure on Monday, with a warning that the UK risks losing its open economy as political rhetoric hardens.
As a result, with confidence in the South African economy improving, the Pound to Rand exchange rate has continued to slump at the start of the week.
Friday saw mass Sterling volatility after a flash crash in the Asian session started a significant Pound Sterling exchange rate decline.
After striking fresh lows overnight, potentially on the back of an automated trading error, GBP/ZAR exchange rates struggled to recover.
Markets spent all week reacting bearishly to the news from last weekend that Prime Minister Theresa May would activate Article 50 by the end of 2017 Q1 at the latest.
Latest Pound / Rand Exchange Rates
On Saturday the Pound to British Pound exchange rate (GBP/GBP) converts at 1
Today finds the pound to pound spot exchange rate priced at 1.
At time of writing the pound to indian rupee exchange rate is quoted at 103.121.
Today finds the pound to euro spot exchange rate priced at 1.16.
FX markets see the pound vs us dollar exchange rate converting at 1.237.
NB: the forex rates mentioned above, revised as of 20th Apr 2024, are inter-bank prices that will require a margin from your bank. Foreign exchange brokers can save up to 5% on international payments in comparison to the banks.
The South African Rand (ZAR) had managed to pressure Pound Sterling (GBP) lower over the past few days, supported by positive data.
While the Barclays manufacturing PMI remained in contraction, the above-forecast score of 49.5 showed a strong recovery towards growth territory.
Meanwhile, the Standard Bank PMI did return to growth, rising from 49.8 to 50.7, bettering expectations of a stagnation score of 50.
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan also helped to buoy South African Rand exchange rates after suggesting the outlook for the economy was becoming positive, noting;
‘We are going through a difficult economic patch at the moment but we may well have bottomed out.’
Flash Crash to Have Lasting Detriment to British Pound (GBP) Exchange Rates
The fact UK data is sparse over the coming week may not make much difference considering the negligible impact even the services PMI recently had on GBP exchange rates.
The only medium impact on the data calendar this week will be the RICS house price balance for September.
The rest of the releases are low impact, and considering even usually volatile data last week failed to distract markets from their Brexit speculation, it is unlikely they will have much of an effect.
Speculation is likely to remain the key driver; whether Pound Sterling will be able to recover towards last week’s levels or continue to weaken from the current year-and-three-quarter low again ZAR remains to be seen.
Production Data and Gordhan Investigation to Drive Rand (ZAR) Exchange Rates
South African economic data over the coming week will concern output and could show that the significant decline seen in manufacturing and mining output has slowed.
Also likely to weigh on the Rand is the ongoing police investigation into Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan.
Cyril Ramaphosa, South African Deputy President, has recently expressed concerns about the adverse effect on the investigations, stating;
‘The law must take its course but in the execution of that legal process nothing must be done as to cause difficulty and problems for state institutions, the Treasury as an institution, and cause imbalances in the economy.’