The South African rand traded around 17.35 per USD, near its highest since early November 2024, largely supported by a rally in precious metals, with gold prices hitting new highs. Meanwhile, investor attention shifted toward the upcoming release of domestic consumer price inflation data and next week’s monetary policy decision. South Africa continues to face persistent inflation and a fragile growth outlook, challenges that are now further compounded by newly imposed U.S. tariffs. The economy grew by 0.8% quarter-on-quarter in Q2, following a modest 0.1% increase in Q1, lifting annual growth to 0.6%. Despite this, overall economic momentum remains sluggish. The outlook for monetary policy remains uncertain as economists are divided between expectations of a pause and a further 25 basis point rate cut by the South African Reserve Bank, potentially in September or the final meeting of the year in November.