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JOHANNESBURG, April 13 (Reuters) – The South African rand fell on Wednesday as a decline in retail sales in February, higher crude oil prices and inflation fears have overshadowed firming prices of commodities.

At 3:40 p.m. GMT, the rand ZAR= traded at 14.5480 against the dollar, 0.30% lower than its previous close.

Retail sales in South Africa fell 0.9% year after-year in February, after up 7.7% in January, according to figures from Statistics South Africa on Wednesday, weakening of the signaling consumer activity amid rising interest rates.

“We are concerned about intensifying headwinds for consumers. These include higher inflation, depressed consumer sentiment, a sluggish labor market and an interest rate environment. ‘less favorable interest,’ local lender FNB said in a statement. Remark.

Sales of food, beverages and tobacco were the most affected, while pharmaceuticals, furniture and clothing increased.

Currencies and stock markets in emerging markets performed well in 2021, but the Russian-Ukrainian war fanned worries on inflation, threatening riskier assets like the rand as investors flock to safer routes .

JThis could also reduce the impetus given to the rand rising prices of ores and metals exported from the country.

Shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) also lost strength on Wednesday, even if the prices gold, platinum group metals and coal Pink.

The benchmark all-equity index .JALSH fell 0.91% to 73,129 points and the premier index of the top 40 companies .JTOPI finished down 0.87% at 66.200 stitches.

In fixed income securities, the yield of the benchmark government bond 2030 ZAR2030= rose five basis points to 9.710%.

(Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Promit Mukherjee Editing by Gareth Jones and Devika Syamnath)

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