* Brazil's economists see deeper rate cuts * Brazil's IGP-DI price index falls 0.4% in July * Chile July copper exports down 2.8% Y/Y By Ankika Biswas
* Brazil’s economists see deeper rate cuts * Brazil’s IGP-DI price index falls 0.4% in July * Chile July copper exports down 2.8% Y/Y By Ankika Biswas Aug 7 (Reuters) – Major Latin American currencies fell on Monday against a firm dollar, with traders bracing for U.S. and China inflation prints this week, while Brazil’s real resumed its downtrend on worries over a deeper monetary policy easing. The MSCI index for Latam currencies fell 0.7% on Monday after logging a weekly decline on Friday, with the dollar edging higher after Friday’s slide on a mixed U.S. jobs report. The real dropped 0.6%. Private economists forecast a deeper policy easing this year and the next after a larger-than-expected 50-basis-point rate cut last week, a central bank poll showed. Adding to the argument, inflation in Brazil, as measured by the IGP-DI price index, fell 0.4% in July from a 1.45% gain in June, with Citi analysts saying this suggests near-term downside pressure to consumer prices. Minutes of Brazil’s July policy meeting are due on Tuesday, with Goldman Sachs analysts expecting the central bank to stress the message behind policy easing and also the need to maintain “contractionary” stance until disinflationary process consolidates and inflation expectations anchor around targets. Top copper producers Chile’s peso and Peru’s sol also slipped 0.7% and 0.4%, tracking lower prices of the red metal. Peru’s interest rate decision is due on Thursday. Chile’s central bank data showed copper exports reached $3.36 billion in July, down 2.8% from a year earlier. Bucking the trend, the Mexican peso gained 0.2%, with markets awaiting a monetary policy decision on Thursday, widely seen staying on hold. Bank of America analysts said the central bank holding for longer will support the currency’s resilience. The country’s national statistics agency said consumer confidence index improved to 46.2 in July from 45.20 the prior month when adjusted for seasonal factors. Colombia’s peso was flat amid thin volumes, with the stock market shut on Monday on account of a public holiday. Traders also awaited July inflation data out of Chile, Colombia and Mexico and retail sales from Brazil throughout this week. The MSCI index for Latam stocks slipped 1% to a three-week low, led by Brazilian equities. Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1512 GMT: Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 1016.05 -0.19 MSCI LatAm 2439.70 -1.01 Brazil Bovespa 119167.39 -0.28 Mexico IPC 54052.61 0.11 Chile IPSA 6291.49 -0.02 Argentina MerVal 451782.72 0.047 Colombia COLCAP 1170.23 -0.31 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 4.9069 -0.66 Mexico peso 17.0222 0.17 Chile peso 855.3 -0.68 Colombia peso 4038 -0.10 Peru sol 3.6858 -0.37 Argentina peso (interbank) 283.1500 -1.34 Argentina peso (parallel) 571 0.53 (Reporting by Ankika Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
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