China News Agency, Johannesburg, April 3 (Reporter Wang Xi) Affected by the downgrade of the credit rating of the international rating agency Fitch and the new coronary pneumonia epidemic, the South African currency Rand broke the 19 Rand / USD mark on the 3rd, setting a record low .
On the same day, Fitch downgraded South Africa ’s long-term foreign currency debt rating from BB + to BB, with a negative outlook due to the “weak domestic economic environment and lack of effective ways to stabilize government debt” and the impact of the New Coronary Pneumonia epidemic. Economic growth has an impact. The exchange rate of the rand against the US dollar fell by nearly 3% to 19.03 rand / dollar.
On March 30, Moody's downgraded South Africa's credit rating to "junk", and the Rand exchange rate fell 2.5% that day, and has been in a downward channel ever since. As of now, the exchange rate of the Rand has fallen by nearly 40% compared with the same period last year.
South African economist Richard Cilliers said that as one of the most liquid currencies in the world, the Rand is one of the worst performing emerging market currencies in the past year. He admitted that South Africa must take action to ensure the normal development of the economy, but this work is extremely difficult in the implementation process.
Jee-A van der Linde, an expert of the South African well-known economic research institution "NKC Africa Economy", said that due to multiple factors, the South African currency Rand has weakened significantly since the beginning of this year, especially in the past The deterioration of the external environment has accelerated its downward movement. He said: "The weak current situation and lack of stamina in the South African economy are frustrating, and the external environment is deteriorating. In particular, the loss of investment-grade status in South Africa has exerted further pressure on the Rand, and the spread of the new coronary pneumonia epidemic has exacerbated The worries of economic development make it unsurprising that Rand's continued weakness. "
Van der Linde expects that the rand will continue to go down, and it will break the 20 rand / dollar mark in the short term. "The worst moment has not yet arrived." (End)