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MSCI Latam FX index set for best winning streak in ~6
years
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Brazil's Petrobras rises, real also higher
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Chilean peso, Peru's sol down amid lower copper prices
By Shashwat Chauhan April 3 (Reuters) - Colombia's peso outpaced its Latin American peers on Monday as oil prices surged after an OPEC+ announcement of a production cut, while currencies of copper producers, Chile and Peru, lagged as weak China data stoked demand worries.
Oil exporter Colombia's peso gained 1.6% against the dollar, on track for its best day in four weeks.
Crude prices gained about 6% after Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ oil producers on Sunday announced further oil output cuts of around 1.16 million barrels per day, while also aggravating concerns around global inflation which appeared to ease last week after U.S. data indicated cooling inflation.
Another major oil exporter, Brazil's real added 0.2%, while state-owned Petrobras rose 2.3%. The company said its executive board will emphasize greener goals and partnerships among new proposals its next strategic plan.
"Commodity prices have adjusted down in the past few weeks, particularly crude oil of which the region (Latam) is an important producer," said Alfredo Coutino, director for Latin America at Moody's Analytics. "This probably will be reflected in Latin American currencies in the sense that it creates the perspective of increase in foreign revenues for the region." The MSCI's index for Latin American currencies rose for the 11th straight session, gaining 0.1%, its biggest winning streak since July 2017. Latin American currencies posted their best quarterly performance in a year in March, outperforming their emerging market peers amid hawkish central bank policies in the region and hopes of a rebound in top commodities consumer China lifted resource exporting currencies.
The Mexican economy could grow up to 3.0% both this year and next, boosted by increased manufacturing investment and cooling inflation, according to a copy of the government's latest budget forecasts seen by Reuters on Friday. The Mexican peso shed 0.2%. Prices of copper eased as manufacturing activity in top consumer China stalled, hurting currencies of the two largest exporters of the red metal, Chile and Peru . The Chilean peso was down 0.1%, with data showing a surprise fall in economic activity.
Peru's sol dipped 0.2%. Data showed over the weekend that Peruvian consumer price inflation based on the metropolitan region of the capital Lima accelerated 1.25% in March
Among other emerging markets, the Bank of Israel raised its benchmark interest rate by another quarter of a percentage point, the shekel was flat after gaining earlier in the session.
Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1508 GMT:
Stock indexes Latest Daily
%
change
MSCI Emerging Markets 988.52 -0.18
MSCI LatAm 2182.19 -0.54
Brazil Bovespa 100850.6 -1.01
4
Mexico IPC 53649.45 -0.47
Chile IPSA 5322.84 -0.03
Argentina MerVal 250188.5 1.82
0
Colombia COLCAP 1164.48 0.6
Currencies Latest Daily
%
change
Brazil real 5.0639 0.06
Mexico peso 18.0680 -0.32
Chile peso 796.8 -0.30
Colombia peso 4602.81 1.06
Peru sol 3.7636 -0.16
Argentina peso (interbank) 210.3100 -0.62
Argentina peso (parallel) 391 1.02
(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; editing by Grant
McCool)
