UPDATE: Rand takes biggest weekly dive since 2015

South Africa's currency.

JOHANNESBURG - The rand has weakened 8 percent against the dollar this week, its biggest weekly drop since 2015 when the then finance minister was axed.

Overnight, the rand plunged 5 percent following reports of a cabinet reshuffle on Thursday night.

By 6.30am on Friday it was at R13.47/$, from Thursday’s R12.79/$, according to iNet Bridge.

#eNCAmoney: Take a look at the latest currencies this morning. For more market news visit https://t.co/rCvwK02WAy pic.twitter.com/OBFt3s71Wv
— eNCA (@eNCA) March 31, 2017

It now remains to be seen if the rand’s crash will be even worse than its 11 percent dive over the three days of Nenegate in December 2015 before President Jacob Zuma replaced then finance minister Nhlanhla Nene with Des van Rooyen.

The JSE’s banks are bound to go into free-fall when the stock exchange opens at 9am. On December 10 2015, the JSE’s banking index lost 13.5%, says iNet Bridge .

Zuma’s appointment of former home affairs minister Malusi Gigaba as finance minister sent the rand 5% weaker against the euro to R14.39/ from R13.72/ and 5.3% weaker against the pound to R16.82/£ from R15.98/£.

READ: Rand weaker as cabinet reshuffle risk resurfaces

On Thursday night the currency dropped to around R13.25 by 10.30pm, after trading at R12.80 earlier in the evening.

The rand has fallen from R12.80/$ at 6pm to R13.28/$ at 10:40. That is a weakening of 3.75% pic.twitter.com/3Z7R9ByL2i
— Ryk van Niekerk (@Ryk_van_Niekerk) March 30, 2017

Markets were under pressure since Monday after Zuma ordered Gordhan to abandon an investor roadshow in Britain and fly home.

Economist Dawie Roodt says South Africa has been paying a significant price because of the recent political uncertainty.

#CabinetReshuffle And the #rand? Here's Economist Dawie Roodt pic.twitter.com/xkFZTQcyIX
— eNCA (@eNCA) March 30, 2017

Rand sells off as Zuma said to have fired S. African finance minister Gordhan https://t.co/PrW4EMwAt2 via @msmkokeli pic.twitter.com/87AUakWcpl
— Bloomberg Markets (@markets) March 30, 2017