South Africa's rand recovers footing but weak economy a risk

South Africa's government bonds edged higher on Wednesday and the rand was on a slightly firmer footing against the dollar after flare-up in risk aversion pushed it to a week's low in the previous session. At 0719 GMT the rand was changing hands at 13.4080 to the greenback, a 0.22 percent gain over Tuesday's close. Traders said the rand could come under renewed pressure as recent economic data pointed to a slowdown both at home and in China, a key importer of South African commodities.