The Mexican peso could not against the strength of the dollar, after United States manufacturing activity grew for the first time since 2022.
It seemed that the Mexican currency was going to have a day of glory this Monday, after the winning first quarter and extending its best levels since 2015, trading above 16.53 per dollar in the first minutes of the session.
However, the news that the Institute of Supply Management (ISM) Indicator rose 2.5 points to 50.3 units in March, a level that separates expansion from contraction, ended 16 consecutive months of lack of growth in manufacturing activity in the United States, Mexico’s main partner.
The improvement in the ISM manufacturing data caused a sharp rise in the dollar index, DXY, which increased 0.41 percent, to 104.695 units, a level not seen since February; Meanwhile, the yield on the 10-year U.S. bond rose to 4.310 percent, inching closer to its highest level of the year.
Thus, the Mexican peso depreciated 6.87 cents, equivalent to 0.41 percent, to close at 16.6312 units per dollar spot. According to the Bank of Mexico, the exchange rate operated between a maximum of 16.6760 units and a minimum of 16.6320.
The national currency had started April strongly against the dollar, due to solid news from China, as that country’s manufacturing activity expanded in March for the first time in the last 12 months.
Monetary policy doubts
On Wall Street, US stocks finished with mixed results. The S&P 500 fell 0.2 percent, to 5,243.77 units; while the Dow Jones fell 0.6 percent, to 39,566.85 integers. The Nasdaq, of technology firms, closed slightly higher, although far from its highs of the previous session, with an increase of 0.11 percent, at 16,396.83 points.
The data released showed that the US manufacturing sector is in its strongest position since 2022, raising questions about whether the economy is accelerating and the impact this could have on the path of interest rates expected by the Federal Reserve .
If the US economy remains strong, monetary restriction would not be a problem, since inflation in that country has difficulty falling quickly.
Meanwhile, market participants are more positive, since the employment figures for the United States, which will be released next Friday, will be key.
Market consensus expects nonfarm payrolls in the United States to increase by 198,000 in March, which would mark a decline from the 275,000 jobs created in February, while the unemployment rate may remain unchanged. .
For its part, the Price and Quotations Index (IPC) of the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) gained 284.22 points, equivalent to 0.5 percent, to close at 57,653.23 points.
China’s manufacturing activity supports oil demand, as it is the largest crude oil importer in the world, which is why the price of Brent rose 0.48 percent, to 87.42 dollars per barrel, while WTI advanced 0.65 percent, to 83.71 dollars .
Gold hit new highs yesterday, following a series of records in March. Futures for the precious metal rose more than one percent to trade as high as $2,286.40 per troy ounce.