The rand took a further hit on Friday, slumping by more than 3% to trade at R15.52/$ by midday.
Bloomberg reported that the currency was on track for its worst week since the pandemic started in 2020.
The rand has weakened from R14.62 a week ago, almost reaching R15.67 earlier on Friday.
Renewed load shedding and catastrophic floods in KwaZulu-Natal are expected to put pressure on the local economy, hurting the currency's expectations.
In addition, the dollar strengthened against most currencies after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said on Thursday that a 50-basis-point hike was on the table at its next meeting in May, Reuters reported.
André Cilliers, currency strategist at TreasuryONE, says the rand has fallen from being one of the best-performing emerging-market currencies to being the worst.
"However, the local currency is getting stretched up here, and we could be due a correction in the short term," he added.
The rand was also weaker against the pound (R19.98), despite the UK currency slumping against the dollar after official data showed tumbling retail sales as Britons grapple with a cost-of-living crisis, AFP reported.
In London morning deals, sterling sank to $1.2887 - its lowest level since October 2020, also as Prime Minister Boris Johnson comes under renewed political pressure.
British MPs on Thursday backed an investigation into whether Johnson lied to parliament over lockdown-breaking parties at his Downing Street office.
The rand was almost 3% weaker at R16.74 against the euro.