JOHANNESBURG, Nov 4 Reuters South Africa39;s rand gained in early trade on Monday against a weaker dollar, as investors geared up for the U.S. to elect its next president and the Federal Reserve39;s interest rate announcement this week.

At 0613 GMT, the rand traded at 17.5250 against the U.S. dollar , about 0.8 stronger than its previous close.

The dollar last traded about 0.2 weaker against a basket of currencies.

The US presidential election on Nov. 5 is the main event this week, eclipsing even the Federal Reserve39;s interestrate decision two days later, said JeeA van der Linde, senior economist at Oxford Economics in a research note.

As the world39;s biggest economy heads to the polls on Tuesday, Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris are virtually tied in opinion polls.

On Thursday, markets will look to the Fed39;s latest rate decision, where investors expect a 25basispoint rate cut.

These developments will be the main driving forces for financial market, van der Linde added.

South Africa39;s benchmark 2030 government bond was unchanged in early deals, with the yield 9.32.

Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Rashmi Aich

Source Reuters