EMERGING MARKETS-Brazil real at 5-month high on GDP data, oil lifts Colombian peso

  • 6/1/2021
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* Brazil economy rebounds to pre-pandemic level * Colombian peso at 2-week highs on rising oil prices * Peruvian sol falls ahead of weekend election (Adds bullets, details; Updates prices throughout) By Susan Mathew and Shreyashi Sanyal June 1 (Reuters) - Brazil"s real rose more than 1% to lead Latin American currencies higher on Tuesday after data showed faster-than-expected economic growth, while surging oil prices pushed the Colombian peso to a two-week high. The real touched a five-month peak. GDP expanded by 1.2% in the first quarter for the third consecutive quarter of growth, taking Latin America"s largest economy back to its size at the end of 2019 before the pandemic. With COVID-19 cases surging and government expenditures at the risk of breaching a spending cap, investors have remained wary of Brazil markets. But rising commodity prices this year as economies reopen after coronavirus curbs have helped improve sentiment. Meanwhile, oil exporter Colombia"s peso rose 1.1%, after Brent crude hit its highest since March on expectations of growing fuel demand. Mexico"s peso was flat, while Chile"s peso fell 0.5% against a dollar which awaits U.S. jobs data due later this week to assess the health of the world"s biggest economy and for clues on the Federal Reserve"s policy stance. Peru"s sol lost 0.7% as anticipation builds for a presidential election over the weekend with the two leading candidates - right wing Keiko Fujimori and socialist Pedro Castillo - neck-and-neck in polls. This comes after a Castillo win looked most likely after the first-round vote. "This narrowing (in polls) is consistent with our view that Fujimori has room to improve in the final week," strategists at Citi Research said. Peruvian markets, considered a safe haven in Latam, have been pressured by the vote, with the sol hitting all-time lows in recent weeks on the prospect of a socialist leadership. Among stocks, Brazil"s Bovespa gained 1.4% with energy firm Cosan SA rising 3.4% after it said that Raizen Combustiveis, its joint venture with Royal Dutch Shell PLC, is expected to file for an initial public offering in the next few days. Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1848 GMT; Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 1391.00 1.07 MSCI LatAm 2608.75 1.91 Brazil Bovespa 128027.02 1.44 Mexico IPC 50949.46 0.12 Chile IPSA 4389.36 0.76 Argentina MerVal 61156.17 3.184 Colombia COLCAP 1221.49 1.71 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 5.1581 1.28 Mexico peso 19.9466 0.00 Chile peso 726 -0.48 Colombia peso 3664.05 1.14 Peru sol 3.862 -0.70 Argentina peso (interbank) 94.7300 -0.04 Argentina peso (parallel) 152 3.29 (Reporting by Susan Mathew and Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Alison Williams) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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