BRASILIA: Latin American currencies on Wednesday firmed as investors saw the latest round of U.S-China trade tariffs as less aggressive than expected, boosting appetite for risky assets.
The Mexican peso strengthened 0.3 percent.
The tariffs "did not have the expected impact, and the market is now focused on the ongoing negotiations" between Canada and the United States, said Alfonso Esparza, an analyst at OANDA.
Longer-than-expected negotiations to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) have weighed on the peso in recent months, but the currency has since recovered after the United States and Mexico reached a deal. Disagreement between Canadian and US negotiators mean talks once again hit a wall.
US Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue said on Wednesday that the Trump administration could still avoid a full-blown global trade war that erodes business confidence if it seals a trilateral NAFTA trade deal and makes progress on European trade issues in the coming weeks.
The Brazilian real rose 0.5 percent after initially weakening at the open. The currency has been battered recently by concerns over the presidential elections.
A voter intention survey for next month's vote showed leftist Fernando Haddad gaining strength, raising concern among traders who see him as less likely to cut government spending and pursue structural reforms than far-right lawmaker Jair Bolsonaro, who has led polls.
Bolsonaro and Haddad are in a technical tie in a likely second-round runoff vote.
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