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Colombian senate committee rejects Petro govt health

reform

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Might be better to slow down rate cuts: Brazil cenbank

director

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Peru's Congress backs new cabinet

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Latam stocks up 1.9%, FX adds 0.9%

By Bansari Mayur Kamdar

April 4 (Reuters) - The Chilean peso rose over 1% on

Thursday, extending its sharp rally so far this week, as the

U.S. dollar weakened and prices of copper, its biggest export,

hit a 14-month peak.

The peso gained 1.3% to 941.4 against the dollar at

1434 GMT, rising for its third straight session.

Boosting the top copper producing nation's currency, prices

of copper touched their highest level since January 2023 on

optimism around demand from top consumer China after strong

manufacturing numbers this week and as the dollar weakened ahead

of key U.S. labor data.

Nonetheless, Chile's peso lags most regional peers so far

this year, despite its sharp 2% gain in the previous session on

hopes of less aggressive rate easing by the Central Bank of

Chile.

"We think that the period of CLP weakness - driven by

aggressive rate cuts - is over, and that USD/CLP could get back

down to 880 at year-end," said Thierry Wizman, global FX & rates

strategist at Macquarie, in a note.

No. 2 copper producer Peru's sol climbed 1% against

the dollar.

Peru's Congress voted to support the government's new slate

of ministers on Wednesday, just hours after the prime minister

promised billions of dollars in new spending, including for

mining projects.

The MSCI's index for Latin American currencies

gained 0.9%, while stocks added

1.9%, after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed

U.S. interest rates were still on course to be cut this year.

Investors watched out for commentary from U.S. policymakers

for more cues on the timing of rate cuts in the world's largest

economy.

Brazil's real gained 0.4% against the dollar,

while the South American country's stocks jumped 1.4%.

Brazil's central bank director Paulo Picchetti said that it

might be better for policymakers to go slower with interest rate

cuts so they can go further.

Sentiment towards Brazil's currency has worsened at the

start of the second quarter due to uncertainty over the future

direction of global central bank policies and mounting fiscal

imbalances at home, a Reuters poll of market strategists showed.

The Colombian peso rose 1% against the greenback.

A senate committee on Wednesday rejected a health reform

proposed by the government of Colombian President Gustavo Petro,

in a new defeat for the leftist, who has struggled to push new

laws for his cornerstone promises through the Andean country's

Congress.

On Wednesday, Colombia issued $1.3 billion in reopened

global bonds, in an operation that was nearly eight times

oversubscribed, meeting finance ministry predictions of high

demand for the paper.

Mexico's peso edged 0.2% higher, with investors

awaiting minutes from its central bank's March monetary policy

meeting.

Elsewhere in emerging markets, Poland and Romania's central

banks left their main interest rate unchanged at 5.75% and

7.00%, respectively.

Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1434 GMT:

Stock indexes Latest Daily %

change

MSCI Emerging Markets 1050.34 0.68

MSCI LatAm 2562.49 1.93

Brazil Bovespa 129153.63 1.44

Mexico IPC 58028.52 0.91

Chile IPSA 6635.26 0.28

Argentina MerVal 1224483.47 0.977

Colombia COLCAP 1389.97 0.44

Currencies Latest Daily %

change

Brazil real 5.0198 0.39

Mexico peso 16.5215 0.08

Chile peso 941.5 1.38

Colombia peso 3773.29 1.01

Peru sol 3.6687 0.17

Argentina peso 861.5000 0.00

(interbank)

Argentina peso 985 2.03

(parallel)