* Brazil's lower house approves tax reform bill * Chile inflation slows further; rate cuts in sight * Mexican inflation continues downward trend in June * Latam FX up 0.6%, stocks jump 2% By Ankika Biswas July 7 (Reuters) - Brazil's real jumped on Friday after the lower house approved reforms to the country's complex consumption taxes, leading gains among currencies in Latin America that were also boosted by a weakening dollar following a U.S. jobs report. The MSCI index for Latam currencies gained 0.6%, but was set for weekly losses, led by a 1.3% jump in the Brazilian real. Brazil's lower house of Congress approved the main text of a tax reform that will restructure the country's complex consumption taxes, a step in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's plan to boost growth. The bill now heads to the Senate for further voting. The changes might simplify the tax system, contributing to improve Brazil's position as the worst among 190 countries in terms of "time spent to pay tax, potentially boosting the competitiveness, consequently the long-term economic growth," Citi analysts wrote. The dollar fell following lower-than-expected job gains in June, even as strong wage growth pointed to a still resilient labor market that likely ensures the Federal Reserve will resume hiking rates later this month. Meanwhile, data showed Mexico's annual inflation decelerated in June for a fifth consecutive month, continuing a downward trend spurred by a long cycle of rate hikes. On Thursday, minutes from the Bank of Mexico's last policy meeting showed its benchmark interest rate was likely to remain on hold for an "extended period," as inflation remains "complex." Higher crude oil prices boosted the Mexican peso by 0.5% and top exporter Colombia's peso by 0.4%. The government on Thursday said Colombia's crude production in May rose 3.59% year-on-year. A Reuters poll revealed Colombia's inflation was expected to have fallen in June, and analysts forecast the trend would strengthen through the rest of 2023, allowing for interest rate stability. Data showed Chile's annual inflation touched a 1-1/2-year low in June, fuelling expectations that the central bank will soon start cutting interest rates. Bucking the trend, the Chilean peso lost 0.4% as an improved risk appetite prompted a 1.3% gain in the benchmark stock index S&P IPSA. Following the data, Goldman Sachs analysts expect Chile's central bank to cut its policy rate by 50 basis points in July and in September each. A Reuters poll showed Argentina has negative net foreign currency reserves of $4.5 billion to $7 billion, underscoring the acute shortage of hard currency that hinders the country's ability to pay its debts. The Argentinian peso was up 1% in black market trading. The MSCI gauge for Latam stocks jumped 2%, led by Chile's S&P IPSA and Brazil's Bovespa, up 1.3%. Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1450 GMT: Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 981.58 -0.32 MSCI LatAm 2448.98 2.04 Brazil Bovespa 118946.59 1.3 Mexico IPC 53922.70 0.96 Chile IPSA 5886.61 1.63 Argentina MerVal 422466.85 1.178 Colombia COLCAP 1118.62 0.32 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 4.8648 1.31 Mexico peso 17.1229 0.61 Chile peso 806.2 -0.50 Colombia peso 4181.74 1.09 Peru sol 3.6413 -0.17 Argentina peso (interbank) 260.8000 -0.15 Argentina peso (parallel) 486 1.03 (Reporting by Ankika Biswas in Bengaluru)
Stock Market News in real time
Stocks mentioned in the article
Price
|
Change
|
5d. change
|
Capi.
| ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1,042 USD | +1.26% | +3.72% | - | ||
2,463 USD | +1.73% | +2.65% | - | ||
9,235 PTS | +2.00% | +3.05% | - | ||
508 PTS | +1.56% | +1.14% | - | ||
360.4 PTS | +2.69% | +1.75% | - | ||
1,279,459 PTS | +4.39% | +27.95% | - | ||
83.53 USD | 0.00% | +1.68% | - | ||
935.1 ARS | -0.22% | +0.76% | - | ||
874.5 ARS | +0.11% | +0.40% | - | ||
3.742 BRL | 0.00% | -1.20% | - | ||
5.471 BRL | -1.05% | -1.41% | - | ||
5.114 BRL | -0.77% | -1.53% | - | ||
12.62 MXN | 0.00% | +0.86% | - | ||
18.33 MXN | -0.65% | +0.64% | - | ||
17.14 MXN | -0.37% | +0.33% | - | ||
0.012 USD | 0.00% | 0.00% | - | ||
0.731 USD | 0.00% | +0.56% | - | ||
0.5938 USD | 0.00% | +0.88% | - | ||
1.069 USD | -0.32% | +0.37% | - | ||
459.6 PTS | +0.08% | +1.98% | - | ||
88.07 USD | +0.10% | +1.75% | - | ||
57,834 PTS | +1.34% | +3.53% | - | ||
126,526 PTS | +1.51% | +1.12% | - | ||
1.249 USD | -0.12% | +0.99% | - | ||
- Stock Market
- Stock Market News in real time
- Currency / Forex
- Brazil real leads Latam FX gains as lower house backs tax reform