Most Latam currencies rise, Argentine peso touches historic low
Peru central bank decision due
Argentine peso hit record low of 512/dollar after CPI data
Peru extends state of emergency in key mining region
Guatemala's court excludes top party from election
Most Latin American currencies rose against a weak dollar on Thursday after slowing U.S. inflation signaled a faster farewell to the U.S. rate-hiking cycle, while Argentina's peso hit a historic low in parallel market trading after inflation data.
Brazil's real
USDBRL
, (BRBY) and Chile's peso
USDCLP
rose 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively, with the dollar tumbling to its lowest since last April after U.S. inflation readings cemented bets of an imminent end to Federal Reserve rate hikes.
The Argentine peso (ARSB=) fell 0.9% in black market trading to a historic low of 512 pesos per dollar after data showed the monthly inflation rate stood at 6.0% in June, below a Reuters poll forecast of 7.0%.
Inflation in the 12 months through June hit 115.6% in Argentina.
As the country struggles with an economic crisis, an Argentine delegation is meeting with the International Monetary Fund this week to renegotiate its $44 million loan.
Peru's sol
USDPEN
added 0.2%, holding near its strongest level since November 2020 ahead of a monetary policy decision later in the day.
The country extended an emergency state for another 30 days along its main roadways, including a key mining corridor, as a new round of protests is expected to kick off next week.
Colombia's peso
USDCOP
rose 0.9%, touching a three-week high.
William Jackson, chief emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, also noted that shocks from the El Nino weather pattern could prompt inflation in central and south American regions to cool more slowly than previously expected.
"Latin American central banks are unlikely to look through food price shocks given how strong headline inflation and wage growth in the region still are. So, upside inflation surprises could postpone the upcoming monetary easing cycles, or make them more gradual."
The Mexican peso slipped 0.4% and was set to snap a four-day winning streak, after touching its highest level since early December 2015 on Wednesday.
The MSCI gauge for Latam stocks (.MILA00000PUS) gained 1.3%, led by a 1.4% advance in Brazil's Bovespa
IBOV
.
Foreigners funneled over $22 billion net into emerging market portfolios in June, the largest amount since January, according to data from the Institute of International Finance.
A Guatemalan court ordered the suspension of anti-graft presidential candidate Bernardo Arevalo's political party, threatening his place in a run-off vote and prompting U.S. warnings of a challenge to democracy.
Elsewhere, the International Monetary Fund's executive board has approved an immediate $189 million disbursement to Zambia following its first review of a $1.3 billion loan programme.
Latam FX hits 10-year high on weak dollar as US inflation slows
The index for Latin American currencies touched a 10-year high on Wednesday, led by Brazil's real, as the dollar dwindled after a U.S. inflation reading indicated just one more interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve this year.
The MSCI index for Latam currencies (.MILA00000CUS) jumped 1.6%, hitting its highest level since April 2013.
Most currencies hit multi-year highs against a weakening dollar after June U.S. consumer prices rose at their smallest annual pace in over two years.
Although talks of rate cuts have intensified in Latam of late, bets on the U.S. rate-hiking cycle coming to an end will likely lead to a favorable interest rates differential.
The Mexican peso
USDMXN
jumped 1%, breaking below the psychological barrier of 17 pesos per dollar, touching an eight year high.
Higher crude oil prices also boosted the Mexican peso and top exporter Colombia's peso
USDCOP
by 0.8%.
Copper prices hit 2-1/2-week highs, boosting currencies of main exporters. Chile's peso
USDCLP
added 0.7% and Peru's sol
USDPEN
rose 1.3%, to its highest level since November 2020. Peru's central bank is set to decide on policy rates on Thursday.
Chile's Finance Minister Mario Marcel said the government now expects gross domestic product (GDP) to grow 0.2% in 2023, revising its forecast down from a previous estimate of 0.3%.
The Brazilian real (BRBY)
USDBRL
gained 0.8%, touching a one-week high.
The rapporteur for Brazil's tax reform bill in the Senate, Eduardo Braga, on Tuesday said that he expects the proposal to be voted on in October in the House.
Data showed Brazil's services activity grew by much more than expected in May, paring some losses seen in April despite high interest rates.
"Progress on the structural reform agenda and the (Brazil) government decision to maintain the CPI target at 3% have cleared the way for rate cuts; we expect a 50bps cut on August 2," said Lawrence Brainard, chief EM economist at TS Lombard.
Meanwhile, Argentine polling firms warned of difficulties accurately predicting the upcoming presidential primaries' results due to low turnout and the emergence of surprise candidates, leaving the October election also uncertain.
The MSCI index for Latam stocks (.MILA00000PUS) jumped 2.5%, touching a one-week high, led by a 1.4% advance Brazil's Bovespa
IBOV
.
World's largest meat packer JBS SA
JBSS3
jumped 9% after proposing a New York listing.
Separately, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a $3 billion, nine-month bailout programme for Pakistan.