The South African rand is climbing after several thousand people rallied in Pretoria, South Africa, protesting against President Jacob Zuma.The currency is higher by 0.6% at 13.7341 per dollar as of 7:48 a.m. ET.
Wednesday's rally against Zuma was the second major protest in less than a week.
Separately, retail sales in South Africa fell by 1.7% year-over-year in February, better than expectations of a 1.8% drop, and an improvement from the prior month's 2.3% drop.
As for the rest of the world, here's the scoreboard as of 7:57 a.m. ET:
- The British pound is little changed at 1.2496 against the dollar as data show that wage growth is slowing in the UK. Average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, rose 2.2% in the three months up to February, the lowest reading since the immediate aftermath of the Brexit referendum in June.
- The euro is little changed at 1.0602 against the dollar. Spanish CPI rose by 2.3% year-over-year in March, in line with expectations, and steady from the prior month's reading.
- The US dollar index is little changed at 100.73 ahead of a quiet data day. Import and export prices will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET.
- The Russian ruble is down by 0.3% at 57.0644 per dollar, while Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, is up by 0.5% at $56.51 per barrel.
- The Korean won closed up by 0.5% at 1,140.24 per dollar after declining for six consecutive sessions.
- The Japanese yen is little changed at 109.64 per dollar.