By Andrés Velasco With the currencies of Malaysia, Indonesia, South Africa, Turkey, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, and Mexico hitting record lows recently, currency traders around the world are asking: How much further can emerging-market currencies weaken? The standard approach to answering this question takes a relatively normal base year and measures how much a country’s currency … Continue reading
Following a week after China’s first major currency devaluation in over two decades, which rattled global markets throughout the week, as emerging market currencies where hit the hardest, and thus drove currencies in Colombia and Turkey to new record lows. Let us take a look at the biggest losers in the emerging markets from the ordeal: Malaysia’s ringgit and Indonesia’s … Continue reading
By Alex Christensen China’s decision to let the yuan depreciate last week came for a number of reasons, including being a needed boost for Chinese export industries. But there are two sides to every currency swing, as the following countries are quickly learning. Did China devalue its currency or liberalize its currency market when it suddenly … Continue reading
By Ariel Noyola Rodríguez Economic relations between China and Latin America are living increasing tensions. As a result of deflation (fall in prices) on a global scale, the South American region is suffering the consequences of concentrating the bulk of its exports to China on commodities. However, the opening of the first yuan financial center in … Continue reading
Latin America’s recent economic fortunes highlight the region’s closer economic ties with Asia. China, in particular, has grown into a crucial source of demand for Latin American commodities over the past two decades, providing significant gains to the region. The flip side is that the ongoing structural slowdown of Chinese investment is weighing considerably on … Continue reading
Latin American currencies are in the ‘eye of the storm’ as currencies of Brazil, Mexico, and Chile could fall as much as 10 percent in the next few weeks amid tumbling commodity prices, growth concerns in China, renewed Fed fears, and a deterioration of domestic fundamentals, Societe Generale (SocGen) said in a bearish report published on Tuesday. SocGen is advising … Continue reading
There has been a recent debate about whether the end of the commodities “supercycle” is over, and if we are entering a new era of lower prices for natural resources, particularly oil. While no one can predict exactly where prices are headed next, one thing I do know is that demand for natural resources has … Continue reading
“Online trading giant Alibaba has expressed interest in doing business in Latin America with a particular eye on Mexico, Brazil and Argentina,” the China-based e-commerce company said in Mexico City on Saturday, Xinhua reports. Chinese consumers are eager to obtain Latin American products, especially fresh produce such as Mexico’s avocado, Sherri Wu, head of Alibaba’s International … Continue reading
By Martin De Angelis A recently signed tri-lateral agreement between China, Peru and Brazil set hopes for a bi-oceanic railway corridor. If feasible, the project would significantly reduce trade costs and shipping times to China. On May 23rd, China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang met with Peruvian President Ollanta Humala to sign the implementation of feasibility studies on a bi-oceanic … Continue reading
By Gillian Tett Five years ago, Guido Mantega, then the Brazilian finance minister, warned that the United States seemed to have embarked on an international currency war. Many shared his opinion: when the Federal Reserve introduced its policies of quantitative easing, it weakened the dollar to such an extent that it sparked numerous complaints from emerging … Continue reading