The South African rand dropped sharply on Wednesday as a fractious budget vote threw into doubt the solidity of the coalition government. At 1640 GMT, the rand traded at 18.7725 against the dollar, about 1.

Leaders of South Africa’s Democratic Alliance will meet to discuss its involvement in the nation’s coalition government after lawmakers passed a budget framework that second-biggest party opposed.

The eight-month-old Government of National Unity teeters on the brink of collapse as South Africa’s two biggest parties, the African National Congress and the Democratic Alliance, disagree on the national budget.