SÃO PAULO, SP (FOLHAPRESS)
The dollar opened lower this Tuesday (2), giving back gains after reaching its highest value of the year in Monday’s session (1st), when it benefited from the appreciation of American Treasury bonds.
The movement was in line with the behavior of the American currency against other currencies.
Amid the recent rise in the dollar, the Central Bank will carry out its first exchange rate intervention this Tuesday since the beginning of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s third term. The authority will hold an additional auction of up to 20,000 currency swap contracts, equivalent to US$1 billion.
The BC’s objective is to provide protection against excessive variations in the dollar in relation to the real (exchange rate hedge) and liquidity to the domestic market.
The Brazilian Stock Exchange started the day stable, with no major catalysts on the radar.
“Risk assets are opening this Tuesday’s session without clear directions, with emphasis on another opening round [alta] of interest rates in the developed world given the return of holidays to European markets and greater uncertainty with the Fed after the release of strong activity data in the USA”, says the Guide Investimentos team.
The market is also awaiting speeches from Fed directors (Federal Reserve, the American central bank) and the release of new employment data in the USA, seeking signals about the future of American interest rate policy.
At 10:16 am, the Ibovespa had a negative fluctuation of 0.08%, at 126,882 points, while the dollar fell 0.19%, quoted at R$5.048.
In a note, the BC said that it will act “with a view to maintaining the regular functioning of the foreign exchange market” in view of the effects generated by the redemption of the NTN-A3 title (National Treasury Note, subseries A3), scheduled for the 15th of April.
The purchase of a swap contract by the monetary authority works as an injection of dollars into the futures market and whoever buys it is protected in the event of a devaluation of the real. It is an instrument used by the Central Bank to avoid dysfunction in the foreign exchange market, ensuring that there is supply to meet an increase in demand for foreign currency.
On Monday (1st), the dollar rose 0.88% and ended the session at R$5.058, on an adjustment day after the Easter holiday. On the Brazilian stock exchange, the Ibovespa fell 0.87%, closing the session at 126,990 points.
The rise in American bonds, the so-called “treasuries”, also contributed, as the movement tends to value the dollar as it increases the return on US fixed income and, consequently, attracts more resources to the country. In reverse logic, it weighs against higher risk markets, such as variable income in Brazil, impacting the Ibovespa.
The market was also impacted by the low liquidity of the session on a holiday in Europe.
On the positive side, Vale, the company with the largest weight in the index, registered an increase, following positive data on economic activity in China.
