Following a short lived recovery on Thursday, the US dollar index edged lower on Friday, ending the week on the back foot. The US dollar broadly traded under pressure against its peers and other riskier assets, as the US consumer confidence data came below market’s expectations, with a dovish tone from the Fed, further keeping it grounded. The dollar retreated to a low of 92.629 before ending the session at 92.686 on the day.

After suffering a minor setback in its previous session, on the back of a short lived fleet to safety, the single currency got lifted on Friday, on the back of broader dollar weakness on the day. The euro rose to a high of $1.1802 before ending the session at $1.1794.

Pound sterling was amongst the biggest winners against the dollar on the day, clawing back its previous session’s losses, as it traded under immense pressure across the board. The cable rose to a high of $1.3781 before ending the session at $1.3761

ZAR

The South African rand edged lower for a 6th consecutive session, also having its best day in the week. The local unit, along with other emerging market assets had a field day on Friday, on  the back of the Fed’s address, which sent some sense of ease across global markets, which also saw a massive re-entry into riskier assets. The rand fell to a low of  R14.6804/$ before ending the session at R14.7163/4

Locally we are empty on the data front today. Internationally, we have an array of data across the EU, Germany and the US. The local unit is most likely going to continue tracking global trends and other market moving events.

Expected ranges for the day:

•                         USDZAR: R14.6500/$ to 14.8000/$

•                         EURUSD: $1.1780 to $1.1830

•                         GBPUSD: $1.3750 to $1.3800