JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The South African rand was weaker early on Friday ahead of U.S. jobs data that could hint at the Federal Reserve's future interest rate path.
At 0721 GMT, the rand traded at 18.6000 to the dollar, about 0.2% weaker than its previous close.
The dollar was flat against a basket of global currencies.
"Markets (are) treading water ahead of today's U.S. employment and PMI data," said Andre Cilliers, currency strategist at TreasuryONE.
The rand often takes cues from global drivers such as U.S. economic data in the absence of major local data points.
"We could see the local currency test the 18.50 mark again today. However, we could see some initial consolidation ahead of today's U.S. data," he added.
On the stock market, the Top-40 index was up 0.76% while the broader all-share index was up 0.69% in early trade.
South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was weaker in early deals, with the yield up 4 basis points to 10.675%.
(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
