EMERGING MARKETS-Mexican peso gains; Colombian peso winner of the week

  • 11/13/2020
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* Colombian peso set to add 2% this week * Peruvian sol logs steep weekly losses * Brazil"s real rises on positive economic data (Updates prices throughout, adds comments) By Ambar Warrick and Shreyashi Sanyal Nov 13 (Reuters) - Mexico"s peso rose on Friday after the central bank held interest rates steady, while most other Latin American currencies fell and were set for weekly losses as initial optimism over a coronavirus vaccine gave way to uncertainty over its delivery. The peso rose 1.4% after the bank left rates unchanged on Thursday, saying that it gave policymakers more options to establish inflation trends and observe the country"s economic recovery. Still, the currency was set to end the week largely flat, having pared most of its initial gains this week on optimism over the vaccine and expectations of stabler U.S. trade policy after Joe Biden"s presidency win. Brazil"s real gained 0.1% after a central bank survey showed the country"s economic activity rose more than expected in September, pointing to a strong performance in the third quarter. The real was set to lose slightly for the week. Colombia"s peso edged higher for the day and was set to outperform its peers for the week with a 2% gain, recently taking support from the government trimming its expectations for an economic contraction in 2020. The country also outlined regulatory changes for pension funds to have more flexibility about investment options, in order to increase liquidity and help an economic recovery. "I personally think Colombia is very well placed. It"s one of the few economies in the region that actually accelerated in 2019 and was poised to grow 4% pre-COVID shock," Eduardo Suarez, Vice-President of Latin America Economics at Scotiabank, told the Reuters Global Markets Forum. "It has an advantage that it has less uncertainty due to politics than other countries in the region." While emerging markets are set to eventually benefit from risk-driven capital inflows with the advent of a vaccine, they are likely to face short-term headwinds from uncertainty over when the vaccine will be released. Peru"s sol was set for steep weekly losses after the ouster of President Martin Vizcarra sparked political unrest in the country. Argentina"s central bank hiked interest rates on Thursday to rein in rampant inflation. But the peso showed little reaction, given that it is subject to strict capital controls. Latin American stocks rose 0.9%, set to gain for the week as expectations of easy monetary policy saw yield-hungry investors buying into equities. Elsewhere, Russia raised 2 billion euros ($2.36 billion) in Eurobonds on Thursday as it tapped the global debt market for the first time this year. Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1834 GMT: Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 1189.22 0.6 MSCI LatAm 2089.12 0.86 Brazil Bovespa 104586.72 2.03 Mexico IPC 40353.56 0.04 Chile IPSA 4001.85 2.18 Argentina MerVal 49922.71 0.746 Colombia COLCAP 1210.86 0.3 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 5.4750 0.05 Mexico peso 20.3827 1.23 Chile peso 766 -0.80 Colombia peso 3640.7 0.02 Peru sol 3.6408 -0.03 Argentina peso (interbank) 79.7400 -0.21 Argentina peso (parallel) 168 -0.60 (Reporting by Ambar Warrick and Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru;

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