US Dollar Slides From 6-day High Against South African Rand

After edging down to 7.5237 by about 9:05 am ET, the US dollar reversed its direction against the South African rand and hit a 6-day high of 7.6078 within one hour on Wednesday. Thereafter, the pair traded lower and currently trading near 7.5317, compared to 7.5760 hit late New York Tuesday.

As expected, the policymaking arm of the US Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate steady Wednesday, leaving it at a target range between 0 and 0.25 percent.

South Africa's consumer price inflation continued to ease in May. South Africa's consumer price index, or CPI, rose 4.6% year-on-year in May, but slower than a 4.8% growth in the previous month, data from the Statistics South Africa showed today. Inflation rate eased for the fifth consecutive month since January, when it slowed to 6.2% from 6.3%. The latest inflation came in line with economists' expectations. A year earlier, the CPI increased 8%.

On a monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.2% in May, in line with economists' expectations. The food and non-alcoholic beverages index increased 0.5%, while transport charges rose 0.3%. But, the recreation and culture index decreased 0.2%.