The rand was flat early on Wednesday, pausing after overnight gains on comments by Federal Reserve chairperson Jerome Powell, which allayed market fears of a sudden withdrawal of US monetary support that had weighed on riskier assets.
At 0707 GMT, the rand traded at R15.5150 against the dollar, not far from its previous close of R15.5100.
In testimony at his re-nomination hearing on Tuesday, Powell said policymakers were still debating approaches to reducing the Fed's balance sheet, and that it could sometimes take two, three or four meetings for them to make such decisions.
Those comments, which were less hawkish than expected, buoyed appetite for risk and supported currencies, such as the rand, which are highly sensitive to shifts in sentiment on global markets.
The rand has tended to track global drivers in recent sessions.
The SA government's benchmark 2030 bond was slightly firmer in early deals, with the yield falling 3.5 basis points to 9.495 percent. The Top40 index on the JSE was 1.1 percent higher in early trade, boosted by Powell's remarks which came after the market close on Tuesday.
REUTERS