Brazil adds more formal jobs than forecast in January
Trump opens probe into potential copper imports
Ukraine bonds jump
MSCI Latam FX down 0.4%, stocks down 0.3%
By Lisa Pauline Mattackal
Feb 26 (Reuters) - Brazil's real led broad losses among Latin American currencies on Wednesday, hit by a rising dollar and U.S. President Donald Trump's probe into potential copper tariffs, while a minerals deal between the U.S. and Ukraine lifted emerging European stocks and currencies.
Brazil's real BRBY dropped 0.9%, on track for its biggest one day fall since January 10, giving back gains from the previous session.
Trump on Tuesday opened a probe into potential new tariffs on copper imports. Chile, Mexico and Peru are among the biggest suppliers of the red metal to the U.S.
Chile's peso CLP= fell 0.3%, Peru's sol PEN= lost 0.1% and Mexico's peso MXN=D3 was down 0.1%, with the March 4 deadline for delayed U.S. tariffs on Mexico and Canada to go into effect looming large.
The U.S. dollar =USD bounced back from recent declines on the day and weighed on Latam currencies.
MSCI's index tracking Latin American currencies .MILA00000CUS dropped 0.4%, while an index of stocks ..MILA00000PUS fell 0.3%.
"Markets are still very much underestimating the likelihood and likely impact of tariffs and we're not seeing a whole lot of tariff risk premia priced outside of the Canadian dollar," said Nick Rees, head of macro research at Monex.
Tariffs designed to boost American manufacturing were more likely to be implemented, Rees added.
Mexican officials were scheduled to meet U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington ahead of next week's tariff deadline.
Elsewhere, stock indexes and currencies in emerging Europe rallied, and Ukrainian bonds rose, after Ukraine was set to approve a critical minerals deal with the U.S. at the heart of Kyiv's push to win Trump's support.
However, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the success of the deal hinged on his upcoming talks with Trump, as the text of the agreement showed the Americans had offered no firm security guarantees.
Most Ukrainian dollar bonds rallied more than 1 cent, with the 2029 bond XS2895055981=TE up 1.3 cents to 72.35 cents on the dollar.
"(The deal) does take some of the big downside risks off the table, but ... it's just one very small step towards a peace deal much further down the line," Rees said.
The rouble RUB= however, reversed earlier gains to trade 0.5% lower against the dollar.
On the data front, Brazil's economy created a net 137,303 formal jobs in January, far exceeding the 48,000 forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.
Israel's shekel ILS= jumped 0.7% after Hamas agreed to free the last hostage bodies included in the initial phase of the Gaza ceasefire.
HIGHLIGHTS
** Brazil stocks rebound to continue, outlook dented after recent fall
** IMF team to visit Pakistan next week with $7 bln bailout review due
Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1530 GMT:
Equities | Latest | Daily % change |
MSCI Emerging Markets .MSCIEF | 1135.81 | 1.2 |
MSCI LatAm .MILA00000PUS | 2041.52 | -0.26 |
Brazil Bovespa .BVSP | 125415.21 | -0.45 |
Mexico IPC .MXX | 53146.84 | 0.18 |
Chile IPSA .SPIPSA | 7347.05 | 0.42 |
Argentina Merval .MERV | 2317710.53 | 1.525 |
Colombia COLCAP .COLCAP | 1637.71 | -0.68 |
Currencies | Latest | Daily % change |
Brazil real BRL= | 5.7921 | -0.91 |
Mexico peso MXN= | 20.483 | -0.1 |
Chile peso CLP= | 945.25 | -0.34 |
Colombia peso COP= | 4126.75 | -0.24 |
Peru sol PEN= | 3.6818 | -0.1 |
Argentina peso (interbank) ARS=RASL | 1061 | -0.02 |
Argentina peso (parallel) ARSB= | 1215 | 2.06 |
(Reporting by Lisa Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)
((LisaPauline.Mattackal@thomsonreuters.com;))
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