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Brazil govt not planning to push for c.bank chief swap -
senator
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Chile consumer prices up 0.8% in January, above estimates
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Latam FX flat, stocks gain 1.1%
(Updates prices, adds comment)
By Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Amruta Khandekar
Feb 8 (Reuters) - Stocks in Latin America rose on
Wednesday after five straight sessions of losses on a boost from
Brazilian shares, while Turkey's Borsa Istanbul suspended
equities trading for five days and canceled trades for the day.
The real gained 0.3% against the dollar.
Brazilian Senator Randolfe Rodrigues, the government leader
in Congress, said there was no government guidance on replacing
central bank chief Roberto Campos Neto, who has been facing
criticism from President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Chile's peso was down 0.8%. The currency reversed
early gains driven by data showing inflation accelerated in
January and exceeded market expectations, which analysts said
could prompt the country's central bank to hold interest rates.
The MSCI's index for Latin American currencies was flat at 2003 GMT. Latam currencies have
gained 3.4% this year, buoyed by hopes of less aggressive
monetary policy tightening by the Federal Reserve and improving
demand outlook for commodities from China after its reopening.
"(However), the global economy is moving into a
deceleration process at least during the first half of 2023,
which is going to impose restrictions on most Latin American
economies. The demand for Latin American exports coming from the
U.S. market is going to reduce significantly," said Alfredo
Coutiño, director for Latin America at Moody's Analytics.
"On the domestic side, the main issue is going to come from restrictive monetary policy. Central banks in Latin America with very few exceptions, have been facing very high inflation."
The Mexican peso edged 0.3% lower against the dollar,
while fellow oil exporter Colombia's peso slid 0.8%.
Stocks in Latin America jumped 1.1%.
Brazil's Bovespa index spearheaded gains among peers,
climbing 2% on a boost from shares of Itau Unibanco Holding SA after the lender reported fourth quarter results.
Elsewhere in the emerging markets, Egypt's
dollar-denominated government bonds fell after Moody's cut the
country's credit rating from B2 to B3 late on Tuesday.
Turkey's Borsa Istanbul suspended trading on its equity
market and canceled trades for the day, while putting on hold
transactions in single stock, index futures and options
contracts for five business days after a devastating earthquake.
Poland's central bank left its main interest rate unchanged
at 6.75% as expected, remaining in wait-and-see mode as it
assesses the damage to the economy caused by the war in Ukraine.
Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 20:03
GMT:
Stock indexes Latest Daily % change
MSCI Emerging Markets 1020.26 0.47 MSCI LatAm 2235.38 1.16 Brazil Bovespa 110027.82 2.04 Mexico IPC 52757.32 -1.08 Chile IPSA 5328.83 1.09 Argentina MerVal 249389.45 1.048 Colombia COLCAP 1261.57 -0.67 Currencies Latest Daily % change
Brazil real 5.1971 -0.04 Mexico peso 18.9352 -0.32 Chile peso 799 -0.76 Colombia peso 4766.05 -0.84
Peru sol 3.849 -0.80 Argentina peso 189.8400 -0.17
(interbank) Argentina peso 376 0.27
(parallel) (Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Amruta Khandekar in
Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Jonathan Oatis)
