CD South Africa: Rand hits weakest level – ever

There were no Heritage Day celebrations for the rand as the local unit hit its weakest levels ever in thin trade yesterday (14.08/$, 15.88€ and 21.462/£). The good news (apart from the fact that it's Friday, and not Monday) is that the local unit has already rallied to 13.85/$, providing some breathing room.

The rand was not the only loser yesterday as emerging markets went belly-up after being hit with Wednesday's poor Chinese data and falling commodity prices. US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen didn't help last night when she reiterated the Fed's position that it still expects to increase interest rates this year. Expect volatility to continue today.

Good luck to the Boks tomorrow as they take on Samoa in Birmingham – we hope everyone gets behind the boys to remind them that our blood is still green and gold! Have a great weekend.

Commentary by Gareth Frye