South African rand slips as investors shun riskier markets (updated)

Sasol

19/06/2025 15:29

Updates to reflect afternoon trade

JOHANNESBURG, June 19 (Reuters) -
The South African rand fell on Thursday, weighed down by risk-off sentiment as the
Israel-Iran conflict
 continued into a seventh day.

At 1415 GMT, the rand traded at 18.07 against the U.S. dollar ZAR=D3, down roughly 0.3% on Wednesday's close and near its lowest level in a month.

This was in line with declines in
emerging market peer currencies
 as investors fled to safe-haven assets while weighing the possibility of U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict.

Domestically, six large banks passed an inaugural
climate-risk stress test
 by South Africa's central bank on the resilience of the country's financial system.

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange's Top-40 index .JTOPI last traded down 0.3%.

Petrochemical firm Sasol SOLJ.J was up over 4% as the conflict in the Middle East continued to push up global oil prices LCOc1.

South Africa's benchmark 2035 government bond ZAR2035= was marginally weaker, with the yield rising 1 basis point to 10.13%.

 (Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov and Alessandro Parodi;
Editing by Alexander Winning and Ed Osmond)

 ((Sfundo.Parakozov@thomsonreuters.com))