Latam FX up as dollar weakens, though set for weekly declines
Updated at 10:31 a.m. ET/ 1431 GMT
Most Latam currencies set for weekly losses
Latam FX up 0.4%, stocks gain 0.3%
By Shashwat Chauhan
Oct 18 (Reuters) -Most Latin American currencies rose against a softening dollar on Friday, though they were set for weekly losses as strong economic indicators and odds of former President Donald Trump returning to the White House buoyed the greenback throughout the week.
Mexico's peso MXN= led the rebound, up 0.8% on the day after briefly breaching the barrier of 20 per dollar in the last session.
Late on Thursday, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said that there was no pause in the strong relations between the Mexican government and the U.S. embassy in the country.
Brazil's real BRL= edged 0.3% lower in volatile trading, headed for a third straight weekly decline, while Chile's peso CLP= gained 0.1% after falling more than 1% in the last session.
Overnight, Chile's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 5.25%, extending an easing cycle since the middle of last year, and predicted further cuts ahead.
Colombia's peso COP= and Peru's sol PEN= rose 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively, in thin volumes, though both were on track for weekly declines.
MSCI's index for Latin American currencies .MILA00000CUS rose 0.4%, while a gauge for stocks .MILA00000PUS added 0.3%, though both were set for weekly losses.
Latin American assets remained under pressure all through this week as investors bet on more stimulus measures from China to aid its faltering property sector, with some recent announcements failing to meet the expectations.
However, Chinese equities rose on the day after China's central bank kicked off two funding schemes that will initially pump as much as 800 billion yuan ($112.38 billion) into the stock market through newly created monetary policy tools.
Also underpinning dollar strength this week was data that showed the U.S. economy remained strong, and improving odds that Trump could retake the White House in the upcoming elections.
"In Latam, MXN stands out as the most vulnerable currency in a Trump win scenario," analysts at Citi wrote in note.
"U.S. elections have become a key driver of uncertainty as risk positioning is clearly fluctuating to a more cautious stance."
Trump's trade policies call for hefty tariffs on imported goods, which analysts expect to be inflationary.
EM equities saw their first weekly outflow in 20 weeks in the week till Wednesday, while debt saw inflows for the fifth straight week, according to a report by Bank of America.
HIGHLIGHTS
** Ukraine's GDP grew by 4.5% in Jan-Sept y/y, economy ministry says
** Romanian leftist prime minister leads presidential race, poll shows
Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies:
Equities | Latest | Daily % change |
MSCI Emerging Markets .MSCIEF | 1155.08 | 1.76 |
MSCI LatAm .MILA00000PUS | 2179.31 | 0.29 |
Brazil Bovespa .BVSP | 130175.97 | -0.47 |
Mexico IPC .MXX | 52563.75 | 0.19 |
Chile IPSA .SPIPSA | 6578.35 | 0.1 |
Argentina Merval .MERV | 1814134.58 | 0.696 |
Colombia COLCAP .COLCAP | 1346.77 | 0.04 |
Currencies | Latest | Daily % change |
Brazil real BRL= | 5.6717 | -0.3 |
Mexico peso MXN= | 19.671 | 0.82 |
Chile peso CLP= | 945.41 | 0.08 |
Colombia peso COP= | 4240.5 | 0.08 |
Peru sol PEN= | 3.751 | 0.37 |
Argentina peso (interbank) ARS=RASL | 980.5 | 0.05 |
Argentina peso (parallel) ARSB= | 1205 | 1.24 |
Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Susan Fenton
Related Assets
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
