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One step forward is a few steps backward for Zimbabwe.

This past week saw the declining value of the Pound relative to other major currencies and significant gains in the ZAR on the back of a weaker Euro and US Dollar (USD).

Over the the past week, we have not seen much happening out of South Africa from a data point of view.

This week saw the Rand gain significantly against the greenback due to the return of risk appetite to European and US markets as well as a weaker US Dollar (USD).

Last week saw the Rand gain significantly due to the increase of positive sentiment in emerging market economies. The Rand then saw a reversal of earlier gains due mainly to a strengthening of the US Dollar (USD) and weaker than expected mining data.

Over the past week we have seen some extremely turbulent times worldwide.

The Rand trimmed some of its losses to trade 0.46% weaker at 14.8200 per Dollar at opening today. This after having hit a session low of 14.9875 in early trade yesterday.

Last week the ZAR performed impressively in the face of a stronger USD, US rate hikes and fragility in emerging markets.

The past week saw a continuation of gains for the Rand as trade war dynamics and excitement around the South African president’s stimulus plan reinforced the currency’s short-term buoyancy.

This week saw the Rand gain significantly against major currencies as risk appetite amongst investors returns and sentiment on emerging market prospects returns.

The past week has seen an astronomical amount of action in the foreign exchange markets.

Last week’s gains were reversed after Wednesday due to fallout from the Argentinean Peso, and further emerging market contagion.

Gains were recorded for the Rand last Monday, breaking the R14.50 to the Dollar mark before closing at R14.54.

The impact of uncertainty in land reform policy and lacklustre economic fundamentals took centre stage in the Rand’s continued downtrend this week as emerging market dynamics started to stabilise. The Rand continued the previous week’s volatile movements last Monday, with an opening price of R14.46 to the US Dollar.

Last week saw the Rand gaining strength on Monday and Tuesday on the back of gains in the emerging markets. Volatility thereafter ensured that the Rand traded mixed on Wednesday and then significantly lost against major currencies on Thursday and Friday.

Staying true to how things have been over the past few months, the trade war between the US and China remains at the forefront of the world’s economic concerns.

The ground the ZAR gained against the Dollar last week, as the greenback slid on trade woes and as local sentiment was boosted after China pledged to invest billions in South Africa, has been lost in the aftermath of Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement that the ANC will seek to amend the constitution to allow the redistribution of land without compensation.

The Rand slumped more than 1.3% on Monday, as uncertainty over trade tensions intensified following US President Donald Trump’s latest attack on China, and as Eskom announced a dire set of results. By 08:00 this morning the local currency was at 13.47 to the Dollar, trading 0.73% stronger than yesterday’s low of 13.57. Not a great a start to the week after last week’s relatively strong showing.

The past week has been a very volatile and confusing one for Rand analysts. It started on Monday when the market was in “risk on” mode, with investors looking to capitalise on improved sentiment throughout the world. This quickly changed on Tuesday when trade war rhetoric flared up again as the US and China implemented additional tariffs on each other. This caused an emerging market sell-off, reversing all previous Rand gains. Since then, however, the Rand has been on the up.

The Rand firmed 1%, or more than 15c, against the Dollar on Monday. This was its best level in a month at 13.30 to the Dollar, as renewed risk-on sentiment hits markets on subdued US data. The somewhat surprising move by the local currency will be cheered by local consumers but will likely be greeted with dismay by local miners and owners of Rand hedge stocks.

The emerging market currency space remains high-risk right now.

We have progressed quite drastically over the past week, last week we saw the Rand move from 17.83 to 18.45 against the GBP in the space of 24 hours. The ZAR is known for feeling the brunt of emerging market selloffs, since it’s one of the most liquid EM currencies traded on the open market. Even in the absence of important data releases it looks like it could be another rough week ahead for the ZAR and other EM currencies.

The last couple of weeks have seen the Rand endure a torrid time, attracting all sorts of doom scenarios from analysts.

The Rand, along with its emerging market counterparts, has seen a significant sell-off in the last week. This action happens in the shadow of both the ECB (European Central Bank) and FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meetings this week. The local currency lost over 4% last week to reach a year low of R13.28 to the US Dollar. In anticipation of today’s Fed and ECB meetings, the Rand has weakened 0.82% from last week’s low, finding a new year-low of R13.39 to the USD.