US Dollar Strengthens Against South African Rand As Donald Trump Becomes New American President
- Donald Trump has officially been announced as the 47th President of the United States of America
- The news of Trump's win saw the United States dollar strengthen against the South African rand
- South African citizens weighed in on the rand's performance, especially against the American currency
Source: Getty Images
Donald Trump has been elected President of the United States of America for the second time, and the markets have reacted accordingly.
The former president surpassed the magic number of 270 electoral college votes needed to become the 47th US President, beating Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
The 78-year-old became the oldest person to be elected to the presidency, but the announcement didn’t inspire confidence in the South African rand.
Dollar strengthens against rand after Trump's win
Following the announcement, the rand dropped further against the dollar, trading at 17.5775. This was a drop of 1.1% on its previous close. It weakened by 2.5% against the American currency earlier as Trump closed in on a win.
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Rand gained prior to US elections
The South African currency has been steadily gaining against the dollar recently as the US prepared for the elections.
The rand traded at 17.50 against the US currency, approximately 0.9% more than the previous close. The dollar struggled against several currencies as the race between the Democrats and Republicans was too close to call.
South Africans weigh in on rand’s showing
While some social media users expressed disappointment in the rand, others noted that the dollar was bouncing back.
Vincent Montsho Tshepiso said:
“The rand is the most useless currency.”
Monwabisi Mkwemnte Peni added:
“This currency should be changed at once. It's very emotional and weak. Every kak it smells, it pukes.”
@MightiJamie said:
“You don’t know economics. The rand did not tank. The US dollar strengthened.”
@BrianMbm1 added:
“Dollar strength means rand weakness and vice versa. By definition.”
@MthunziLKDwanya said:
“The rand is a reactionary currency. It does not have value on its own but only relative to currencies such as the USD dollar or British pound.”
South Africans joke about strengthening rand
In a related article, Briefly News noted how the South African rand strengthened recently against the dollar.
Citizens roasted Mzansi's currency, with some making political jokes about how the rand has been strengthened.
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Source: Briefly News
