Rand suffers big decline

EFFECTS: HAS A LOT TO DO WITH SA'S 'WEAK GROWTH STORY' AND LEADING TO OUTFLOWS

- Liesl Peyper

The considerable weakening of the rand against the dollar since mid-December is 20% attributable to a stronger dollar and 80% due to domestic factors, such as South Africa's lacklustre growth, says Stanlib chief economist Kevin Lings.

The rand has fallen sharply against the greenback over the past three weeks. On Friday the South African currency broke through the R19 level, trading at R19.10 around 5pm. This is more than 7% weaker against the dollar compared to a month ago.

This week alone, the currency has seen its biggest decline since June last year.

Although some of the rand weakness is attributable to dollar strength, that is not the only explanation, says Lings.