Rand hits record low

The South African rand hit new record lows against the dollar on Monday, reflecting the country's growing economic crisis as commodity prices fall, growth slows and investors lose confidence. China's slowdown badly impacted African mining exporters in 2015, and concerns over the Chinese economy have triggered further damage to emerging nations already this year. The rand plunged as much as nine percent on Monday morning, the most since October 2008, to 17.91 per dollar, before making a partial recovery.