South Africa's commodity-backed currency and stocks weakened on Wednesday, with investor focus on precious metal prices that have been on the back foot after U.S. President Donald Trump's latest tariff threats.

Despite some volatility in global oil markets, a resilient rand is keeping petrol price recoveries in check, supporting potential cuts in August.

The United States has imposed a 30 percent tariff on all South African exports to establish what it called a ‘’more balanced and fair trade’’ and threatened more tariffs if Africa’s biggest economy retaliates.