Still firm

The rand firmed on Friday as the dollar lurched on weak jobs data, erasing losses sparked by a central bank warning that speculation of a big foreign exchange inflow on a proposed banking deal was overdone.

RMB AM and Business Day report that the rand was trading at R6,54 against the dollar - 6c firmer than its New York close on Thursday, and off the day's trough of R6,6350 to the dollar reached after comments from Reserve Bank governor Tito Mbowni sparked a brief sell-off.

In New York, the dollar fell against the yen on Friday, marking its steepest one-day drop in more than a year, pushed lower by surprisingly weak jobs data and speculation that China might soon allow its currency to appreciate against the dollar.

The euro earlier rocketed against the dollar, trading at a one-week high of $1,2433, up more than 1% on the day, but was at $1,2410 in late New York trading.