South Africa's rand firmed against a broadly weaker dollar in early trade on Friday and was set for a weekly gain, as traders awaited U.S. jobs data that could impact the Federal Reserve's hawkish stance on monetary policy.
At 0610 GMT, the rand traded at 15.2275 against the dollar, 0.31% firmer than its previous close and having gained more than 1% since Monday.
The U.S. dollar index against other major currencies has dropped 2% this week - its biggest weekly fall since March 2020 and a sharp reversal after the index rose a week earlier, when traders rejigged positions preparing for faster Fed rate hikes than had been previously expected.
Rate hikes by the Fed typically drain capital from higher-yielding but riskier emerging markets (EM) including South Africa, weighing on their currencies.
The rand, however, also faced domestic risks after power utility Eskom this week started implementing scheduled power cuts - the latest in a series of outages that have constrained economic growth in South Africa.
In fixed income, the yield on the benchmark 2030 government bond was down 1.5 basis points to 9.21%, reflecting firmer prices.
(Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
