JOHANNESBURG: South Africa's rand weakened more than 1 percent on Thursday as bonds and stocks fell, after a report showed the country's current account deficit widened in the third quarter, dimming investor appetite for the currency.
The rand was trading at 14.0800 per dollar by 1040 GMT, 1.66 percent weaker. It earlier reached 14.0900.
South Africa's current account deficit widened to 3.5 percent of gross domestic product in the third quarter from 3.4 percent in the second quarter, the South African Reserve Bank said.
"The current account figure has added momentum to the rand's slide from earlier in the session. The figures talk to the vulnerability faced by South Africa to portfolio outflows, especially in a environment where the Fed is tightening and there are worries about Eskom," said ETM Analytics Halen Bothma.
The poor numbers will dampen the economy's momentum after data on Tuesday showed South Africa emerged from its first recession in almost a decade in the third quarter.
Government bonds also weakened, with the yield on the benchmark bond due in 2026 rising 9 basis points to 9.065 percent.
The All Share index was 2.78 percent lower at 50,273 points. The blue-chip Top 40 index was down 3.02 percent at 44,297 points.
Retailer Steinhoff International Holdings lost 10.11 percent to 1.60 rand after it reported that it delayed publishing its 2017 and 2018 financial statements, citing delays to a forensic investigation being conducted by auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers.
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