The rand was a fraction softer in midday trade on Tuesday, trading in a tight range, awaiting further direction from the dollar.

At 11:31 the rand was bid at 7.3282 to the dollar from 7.2984 at its previous close. It was bid at 10.9882 to the euro from its previous close of 10.9385 and was at 12.0430 against sterling from 11.9989.

The euro was bid at $1.4969 from $1.4965 overnight.

A local trader said: "It's very quiet at the moment. The rand is trading in a very tight range of 7.30 to 7.36 against the dollar."

Dow Jones Newswire reported that the dollar was suffering in Europe on Tuesday on continued optimism over the global recovery and the recent spat of strong third-quarter earnings.

However, there are already signs that the rally in global equities is losing momentum, with European stocks failing to extend the gains seen in the US and Asia.

Strong earnings from Apple late on Monday kept optimism alive and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.0 percent on the day.

The euro, meanwhile, appeared set to break over $1.50 for the first time since the middle of last August after eurozone finance ministers who met on Monday failed to convince financial markets that they are seriously concerned about the euro's recent strength.

Bonds were little changed by midday on Tuesday, after what traders described as a fairly good auction. Players are now eyeing the key Reserve Bank interest rate decision on Thursday afternoon.

By 11.45am, the short-term government R154 bond was bid at 7.570 percent from a previous close of 7.530 percent. The medium-term R157 was at 8.585 percent from 8.565 percent, while the long-term R186 was bid at 9.215 percent from 9.195 percent.

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