JOHANNESBURG, Aug 17 Reuters The South African rand was little changed in early trade on Thursday before the release of business confidence figures later in the day.

At 0650 GMT, the rand traded at 19.1725 against the dollar , not far from its previous close of 19.1875.

The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry will release its business confidence index for July and June at 0930 GMT.

The index fell in every month over January to May, hurt by record power cuts, rising interest rates and lower trade volumes among other factors.

South Africa39;s economy is expected to barely grow this year because of a power crisis that means businesses and households are without power for hours every day.

South Africa39;s benchmark 2030 government bond was slightly weaker in early deals, with the yield up 2.5 basis points to 10.370.

Reporting by Tannur Anders Editing by Alexander Winning

Source Reuters