JOHANNESBURG, June 7 (Reuters) – The South African rand was stronger in early trade on Friday, after the African National Congress (ANC) said it would seek to form a government of national unity after failing to win a majority in last week’s election.

At 0712 GMT, the rand traded at 18.88 against the dollar ZAR=D3, around 0.6% stronger than its previous close.

ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa said late on Thursday that the former liberation movement would invite other political parties to form a government of national unity (GNU), a similar arrangement to the one after 1994’s historic all-race vote that ended apartheid.

The ANC said it had already held constructive talks with parties including the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and pro-business Democratic Alliance (DA).

“The rand is trading marginally firmer this morning in cautious trade as markets await the exact makeup of the GNU and what parties will be involved,” said Andre Cilliers, currency strategist at TreasuryONE.

“Trading conditions will remain on the volatile side as traders turn cautious and liquidity dries up a bit.”

The ANC is expected to brief the media later on Friday on the outcomes of Thursday’s National Executive Committee meeting.

On Friday the rand could also take its direction from U.S. jobs data.

In domestic economic data, South Africa’s net foreign reserves rose to $58.287 billion at the end of May, from $57.851 billion in April, central bank data showed.

The benchmark 2030 government bond ZAR2030= was firmer in early deals, the yield down 3 basis points to 10.615%.

(Reporting by Tannur Anders; Editing by Alexander Winning)