Johannesburg - South Africa's rand broke through 11 to the dollar, a key level, for the first time in seven months on Wednesday, caught in an emerging-market sell-off and plagued by poor domestic data.
The rand weakened for the fourth straight session on Wednesday, reaching 11.0185/dollar, its weakest since February.
“The emerging-market sell-off is not requiring any specific catalysts over and above that already linked to Fed rate hike concerns,” Tradition Analytics said in a market note.
By 18:08 SA time the rand had strengthened slightly, to 10.9400.
Dealers said the fall had been steep and rand bears were likely to take a break before trying for new levels.
The dollar is rallying on bets that the Federal Reserve will begin raising US interest rates next year, making the dollar more attractive to investors.
Weighing on the rand are data released by the central bank during the previous session, which showed the current account deficit widened more than expected in the second quarter.
The data highlighted South Africa's external vulnerability, as the current account is generally funded by portfolio inflows.
Government bonds tracked the weaker rand, with the yield on the benchmark bond due in 2026 rising to a three-week high of 8.255 percent.
More domestic output data are due on Thursday.
Statistics South Africa will release figures on mining and manufacturing, both of which are in recession and led the whole economy to shrink in the first three months of this year. - Reuters