Stocks ended lower dragged down by Vodacom, which saw its share price slip after parent company Vodafone said it was selling down its stake.
By 1510 GMT the rand was 0.66 percent firmer at 12.8200 per dollar, its firmest level since June 26, with most of the gains coming late in the session as the greenback was knocked by a mix of data developments.
Gold prices rose towards the one-year high hit earlier in the week, boosted by safe-haven buying linked to tensions on the Korean peninsula. The rand and other commodity-linked currencies lapped up the demand for bullion.
The rand had kicked off the session on the front foot following data on Tuesday showing the economy grew 2.5 percent in the second quarter following two straight contractions.
"It's tepid growth and it's not nearly enough but for the short term the rand will respond positively because growth, any growth, allays fears about downgrades and fiscal slippage," said economist at ETM Analytics Halen Bothma.
Bonds were firmer with the yield on the benchmark paper due in 2026 cutting 0.5 basis points to 8.43 percent..
On the stock market, the benchmark Top-40 index was down 1.3 percent at 49,023.66 points, while the broader All-share index declined 1.2 percent to 55,480.20.
Vodacom shares slid nearly 8 percent after its parent Vodafone sold down 5.2 percentage points of its shareholding at a discount.
Vodafone announced after the close on Tuesday that it would sell 90 million Vodacom shares in a private placement. The shares were sold overnight for 165 rand each, compared with a closing price of 178.30 rand.
"It usually send out a very negative signal when a parent company is willing to sell at a substantial discount," said Gryphon Asset Management equity analyst Cassie Treurnicht.
"Do Vodafone believe that Vodacom is over-valued at previous highs around R180?" Treurnicht added.
Vodacom shares were down 7.9 percent at 164.28 rand.
Banking stocks also weighed on the bourse, with the banking index down 2.8 percent after Capitec, the nation's fastest-growing lender, flagged slower growth in half-year earnings.
Shares in Capitec shed 2.7 percent to 873.75 rand, while Barclays Africa Group declined 6.4 percent to 140.37 rand.