Positive Manufacturing News Causes Surge in South African Rand

Many forex brokers are bulish on the South African rand as a solid investment option. The country recently saw a major spike in tourism centered on its role as host of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. However, analyst Cees Bruggemans at FNB said that other measureable numbers point to strength for the rand. South Africa’s manufacturing sector showed an 8.8 percent output increase in June while food and beverage output increased by seven percent during the same time.

Both of these numbers point to South Africa being able to sustain the economic growth it received because of the World Cup. The strong numbers in sectors such as manufacturing and overall production caused a run on forex trading for the rand culminating in a one-week high of 7.3219 on August 11.

However, not everyone is so high on the rand. Leading providers of online forex trading eToro said the strength of the rand against the U.S. dollar could dampen the overall growth of the South African economy by hurting the export market.