The rand has continued to plummet on Friday, reaching record levels against the dollar.

With the number of global coronavirus cases steadily climbing after breaching the one-million mark, traders say surging numbers of infections signal a prolonged period of significantly subdued economic activity.

This is because more containment measures may be required to curb the virus.

The rand is among a number of emerging market currencies that have continued to plummet as fears grow about the effects of the coronavirus.

The downgrade by Moody’s also affected the currency, but many analysts agree that COVID-19 overshadowed this.

Emerging market currencies have made hefty losses so far this year as investors rush to safer assets, pushing many such as the rand and most Latin American currencies to all-time lows.

Added to this, there are now doubts about a US-brokered deal between Russia and Saudi Arabia regarding oil prices.

Ambiguity regarding the amount of cuts, to stimulate prices, has seen analysts cast a skeptical eye on the deal.

-EWN