whore has started This week it is at its lowest in four months as oil prices remain high amid escalating hostilities in the Middle East, raising inflation concerns ahead of a highly anticipated interest rate decision.
At 8.51am, the rand traded at R17.23/US$, down 1.3% from its previous close, its weakest level since November 2025.
The continued weakening of the rand is likely to put pressure on technology prices in South Africa, where the sector is almost entirely dependent on imported hardware.
Laptops, servers, networking equipment, smartphones and components are highly priced in US dollars, meaning any drop in the exchange rate depends directly on local shelf prices.
The timing could hardly be worse.
Global RAM and SSD prices are rising as AI-hungry data centers increase memory and storage capacity Gartner is estimating Combined DRAM and SSD prices are expected to increase by 130% by the end of 2026 – enough to push PC prices up by 17% and smartphone prices by 13% globally.
Major manufacturers including Lenovo, Dell, HP, Acer and Asus have already warned of steep price hikes. For South African buyers, the weak rand on top of those dollar-denominated components amounts to a double whammy: even before the currency move, hardware was becoming significantly more expensive.
big squeeze
Together, the two forces could put the price of entry-level PCs and smartphones out of reach for a growing number of consumers and small businesses. Software priced in dollars, including cloud platforms, will also increase costs for consumers and businesses.
Rising oil prices are exacerbating the problem by increasing shipping and logistics costs, which are already a significant factor for a country at the end of long global supply chains. If the rand remains under pressure and oil remains high, local distributors and retailers may have no choice but to pass on higher costs to consumers and enterprises alike – increasing pressure on already tight IT budgets.
On Saturday, US President Donald Trump threatened to “destroy” Iran's power plants if it did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, barely a day after he called for an “end” to the war, now in its fourth week.
Reading: Chip shortage hits PCs as AI swallows the world's memory supply
Meanwhile, Iran said on Sunday it would retaliate by attacking its Gulf neighbours' energy and water systems if Trump follows through on his threat.
Analysts expect rising oil prices to continue to weigh on the rand after a tough three weeks amid concerns about rising inflation in net energy importer South Africa.
Domestically, investors' focus will be on the South African Reserve Bank's rate decision on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters expect the bank to keep its key lending rate steady at 6.75%.
Bank Governor Lesatja Kganyago said earlier this month that the bank would revise its risk outlooks for its next policy meeting as oil prices continued to rise due to the Middle East conflict.
Other economic indicators due this week include composite leading business cycle indicators on Tuesday and producer inflation data on Thursday.
Key South African gold and platinum exports declined by 5% and 9% respectively, putting further pressure on local assets. — Sfundo Parakozov, (c) 2026 Reuters, with additional reporting (c) 2026 Newscentral Media
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