South Africa's credit rating cut

South Africa's credit rating has been cut to junk status by the ratings agency S&P Global.
    
The agency said that political upheaval, including the recent sacking of finance minister Pravin Gordhan, was endangering the economy.
    
S&P also expressed concern over government debt, and in particular the expense of supporting the state energy firm Eskom.
    
The news put more pressure on the rand, which was down two per cent against the dollar.
    
The financial downgrading is likely to make it more expensive for South Africa to borrow money on the international markets, as lending to the country would be seen as riskier.