South African Rand Gains as Traders Wait for ANC Leadership Vote Results

The South African rand gained against the US dollar today ahead of the results of voting for the country’s ruling party leadership.

The ruling African National Congress party was voting for a new leader to replace President Jacob Zuma. Market participants were betting on victory of Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, whom they consider preferable to his only opponent former cabinet minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. Still, the difference in votes expected to be very narrow, making it hard to say for certain who will win. Traders expect a sharp move from the rand after the announcement of the voting result.

USD/ZAR fell 1.04% to 12.9630 as of 11:15 GMT today.

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