THE depreciation of the South African Rand should not be seen in isolation to developments in other financial markets, says Finance Minister Trevor Manuel. The volatility of the local currency was “not a uniquely South African phenomenon”, he told journalists in Cape Town. Recent uncertainty in other developing economies, such as Turkey and Argentina, and interest rate cuts in the United States had created turmoil on markets around the world. Manuel said South Africa’s economic fundamentals were sound and the continuing volatility of the currency was something the markets merely had to live with. The fall of the South African rand has roughly been in line with that of the Australian and New Zealand currencies.