The rand closed at R14.15 to the greenback on Monday afternoon.

The day's range was between R14.10 and R14.23.

The tariff truce between China and the US last month eased some of the tension and gave stock markets hope that a lasting peace is within reach.

But with duties on hundreds of billions of dollars of goods still in place and a separate regional skirmish heating up, don’t look for an end soon in the global trade wars.

The latest signs of Asia’s slump are due later this week. Chinese imports probably dropped in June, a report Friday is forecast to show, after contracting every month this year except April. The culprits: a weaker domestic economy and softening overseas demand. Exports in June are also expected to shrink. The slowdown is spreading across the region, with Japanese, Taiwanese, and South Korean exports also hit. Adding to the stress are signs that a free-trade-espousing country like Japan is using protectionist trade policies to achieve a political goal.

Japan is considering removing South Korea from a list of trusted nations that receive preferable export treatment — the latest turn in a feud dating back generations to the colonisation of the Korean peninsula. As a result, South Korea’s Samsung has lost about 16 trillion won ($13 billion) in market value this month because it relies on Japanese materials. While it’s unclear yet if Japan’s decision will lead to massive disruption of trade flows, it adds to an already growing list of risk for companies and investors. - Bloomberg

Europe stocks, US futures shrug off Asia slump

Adam Haigh and Laura Curtis, Bloomberg 

European stocks drifted and US equity futures dipped on Monday, largely shrugging off steep declines in Asia as investors kick off the busy week in a cautious mood.

The Stoxx Europe 600 was mixed while S&P 500 contracts pared an earlier drop, following a sharp retreat across the Asian region, where Shanghai and Seoul bore the brunt of the losses.

Technology stocks in Asia underperformed amid the fallout from Japan’s export controls on certain Korean semiconductor materials, while concern that a flood of new listings will overload the market weighed in China.

The euro was steady after German industrial production data just missed expectations and as Deutsche Bank’s shares climbed after it announced plans to cut the workforce by one-fifth.

The Treasury 10-year note yield ticked down toward 2%.

Meanwhile, Turkish assets were in focus after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s shock decision to replace the country’s central bank governor fueled concern the regulator will lower borrowing costs more than expected. The lira slid.

New CFO for Steinhoff 

Steinhoff announced on Monday that Theodore de Klerk would take over as its new CFO on September 1. 

De Klerk is the conglomerate's current operations director and member of the group's management board.

He will be replacing Philip Dieperink, who is stepping down by "mutual consent".Subscribe to Fin24’s newsletter here 

"Theo has been with the group in various positions since 2003 and is well-qualified for the post," said Steinhoff. 

Deutsche Bank CEO slashes 18 000 jobs in $8.3 billion overhaul

Deutsche Bank AG has unveiled a radical overhaul that will see the lender exit its equities business, post a 2.8 billion-euro ($3.1 billion) second-quarter loss and cut the workforce by a fifth to reverse a slide in profitability.

Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing will shelve the dividend this year and next and take restructuring charges of 7.4 billion euros through 2022 to pay for an overhaul that shrinks the German lender’s once-mighty investment bank along with its global footprint and key fixed-income business.