Faced with a resilient dollar thanks to its safe-haven status, the British pound hit its all-time low against the dollar on Monday. Meanwhile, the South African rand weakened in early trade.

Investors are concerned that London's new budget spending could derail the public finances of a country that may already be in recession. Thus, against a resilient dollar thanks to its safe-haven status, the pound plunged to $1.0350 around 01:25 GMT, its lowest since 1971, the end of the Bretton Woods Agreement and the adoption of a global floating exchange rate regime.

By 0730 GMT, the British currency had rebounded to $1.0743, but some analysts believe it could reach parity with the dollar in the near term.

The South African rand weakened early Monday as the safe-haven U.S. dollar continued to soar against a basket of major currencies. At 0732 GMT, the rand was trading at 17.9925 against the dollar, 0.14 percent lower than its previous close. The Dollar Index was up 0.035 percent at 113.180.