JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's rand opened on a steady footing against the dollar on Thursday ahead of important domestic economic data, with traders taking little risk before the four-day Easter holiday.
The rand was at 9.2533 against the dollar at 0609 GMT, a shade firmer than Thursday's New York close of 9.265.
Credit demand growth by South Africa's private sector fell to 7.88 percent year-on-year in February, compared with an unrevised 8.64 percent rise in January, although the data had little impact on the currency.
Trade data for February is due at 1200 GMT.
Economists polled by Reuters forecast a deficit of 11.9 billion rand in February compared to a 24.53 billion rand trade gap in the previous month.
"A much narrower trade deficit could be rand supportive," Tradition Analytics said in a note. "Even with regards to the trade data, one suspects that the reaction even if positive could be muted ahead of the Easter long weekend."
Government bonds firmed after the credit data. Yields on the benchmark bonds fell three basis points, with the 3-year bond moving to 5.485 percent and the longer-dated 2026 paper dropping to 7.415 percent.
Producer inflation data is also due at 0930 GMT.
Economists expect producer price inflation to slow to 5.6 percent in February from 5.8 percent in the previous month.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/africas-rand-steady-ahead-long-easter-weekend-072139378--finance.html
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