sacking on Nhlanhla Nene in the ministry. Zuma had immediately replaced Nene with a relatively unknown lawmaker, David van Rooyen, sparking a wave of criticism and financial turmoil. The currency fell more than 6 percent over two days last week following the removal of Nene, a civil servant veteran who was keen to rein in government spending. Gordhan’s appointment on Sunday helped the rand recover most of its losses and set it up for its biggest daily percentage gain since 2008.
South Africa’s rand strengthened more than 4 percent in early trade on Monday, extending overnight gains after President Jacob Zuma named Pravin Gordhan as the new finance minister. Zuma late on Sunday restored a widely respected Gordhan to the ministry in a dramatic U-turn that gave Africa’s most advanced economy its third finance minister in a week. By 0610 GMT, the rand had strengthened 4.66 percent against the dollar to 15.1495, recouping some losses suffered last week following the Additional Reading?
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