JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's rand was weaker on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest policy statement, which maintained its economic stimulus measures but suggested it may taper sooner than previously expected. The rand was at 9.9525 to the dollar at 0609 GMT, down slightly from Wednesday's New York close of 9.9420. It could come under further pressure later in the session when trade data for September is released at 0930 GMT, with the market expecting a narrower but large trade gap. Producer inflation data for September is due at 1200 GMT. The Fed on Wednesday announced plans to continue its $85 billion per month bond-buying programme. Although the market consensus is that tapering will begin in March, some market participants said the central bank could act earlier. "The risk of a Fed taper at the December FOMC meeting remains a possibility. While we doubt this will be the case, the mere possibility of such a scenario has hit global risk appetite," Rand Merchant Bank analysts wrote in a note. "Given the rand's sensitivity to global risk appetite at the moment ... it is not surprising that the local unit weakened following the announcement." The yield on the 2026 government bond climbed 5 basis points to 7.96 percent while that on the 2015 paper rose 3 basis points to 5.81 percent.