Mexico News & Dollar Exchange Update: Mexico to Sell US Money in Support of Peso
This week the Mexican peso fell to its weakest level to date against the U.S. dollar.
In an effort to remedy this frightful economic situation, the foreign exchange commission, which is made up of officials of the central bank and the Finance Ministry, announced that the Bank of Mexico will sell additional dollars to support the peso.
According to the Wall Street Journal, a plan has been arranged that for the next three months the central bank will offer $52 million a day at auctions. This will be in addition to the $200 million it already sells on the days when the peso weakens 1.5 percent from the previous session’s fixing.
The commission has said the auction of the $52 million will run on through June 8 will not be conditioned on a weakening of the peso.
In order to make dollars available for the sales, the central bank will slow down its accumulation of foreign reserves.
Mexico’s reserves are increased by dollar inflows from crude oil sales by state energy company Petróleos Mexicanos.
Last week the reserves stood at $195 billion.
Mexico currently has a $70 billion flexible credit line deal with the International Monetary Fund. This deal renewed last year.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the commission said the new measures are aimed at “preventing additional pressures that could upset the orderly functioning of the exchange market.”
The plight of the peso can be linked to the dollar’s broad rally which on Tuesday led the peso to its weakest level point ever against the U.S. currency.
The resulting exchange ended up at 15.6485 pesos for $1, a number that was weaker than the 15.59 in March 2009, which happened at the height of a worldwide financial crisis.
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