By 15:55 the rand was bid at R6.7270 to the dollar from its previous close of R6.7400. It was bid at R10.0318 to the euro from a previous R9.9834 and at R13.1909 against sterling from R13.2024 before.
The euro was bid at $1.4884 from $1.4806 overnight, while gold was quoted at $906.80 a troy ounce from its previous close of $897.20/oz.
Gold rose to a fresh all-time high of $914.40 an ounce on Monday following ongoing bullish momentum from a weakening US dollar and concerns over the gloomy outlook for the US economy, traders said.
Meanwhile, Dow Jones reports that fears that fourth-quarter earnings from major US banks will show even greater than anticipated losses were helping to drive the dollar lower in Europe Monday.
The rise in risk aversion is helping to push the yen higher across the board, while the euro is still pushing ahead on the assumption that the European Central Bank will remain hawkish, even in the face of weaker euro- zone data.
The tone for the dollar was initially set by US Federal Reserve chairperson Ben Bernanke late last week when he made it clear that the Fed is willing to cut interest rates by as much as 50 basis points at the end of this month.
New data this week, including retail sales and producer prices, are expected to reinforce this view, with some analysts suggesting that the Fed may even cut rates before the scheduled open market committee meeting January 30.
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