A South African one rand coin sits on South African rand banknotes in this arranged photograph in Pretoria, South Africa, on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2019. The rand ended a tumultuous week on a positive note, gaining against the dollar for a second day and heading for its first weekly advance in four as technical indicators suggested recent declines are overdone. Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg via Getty Images

JOHANNESBURG, Aug 13 (Reuters) – The South African rand was little changed early on Tuesday, before the release of domestic mining and unemployment data which could set the tone for the day’s trading.

At 0555 GMT, the rand traded at 18.24 against the U.S. dollar, a whisker away from its closing level on Monday.

June mining output numbers will be published at 0900 GMT and the second-quarter unemployment rate at 0930 GMT.

Economists polled by Reuters estimate mining production contracted 0.8% year on year in June, after May’s flat output. The official unemployment rate is expected to have dipped slightly to 32.3% in the second quarter from 32.9% in the previous quarter.

(Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Andrew Heavens)