El Salvador Food Prices in Decade-High Hike; Mexico to Maintain Crude Exports

Bloomberg Línea — El Salvador’s staple food prices saw their sharpest rise in a decade in February, up 9.45% compared with the same month of 2021, according to the central bank.

Mexico will maintain its crude oil exports at around one million barrels per day to take advantage of the current high rises, in a U-turn by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who had previously announced a plan to cut the country’s oil exports by half.

On the region’s stock markets, Mexico’s (MEXBOL) posted the highest gains in Latin America, with the S&P BMV/IPC closing up 2.03%, while Brazil’s Ibovespa (IBOV) was the second best performer, gaining 1.98%.

Following is a roundup of Friday’s news from Bloomberg Línea and Bloomberg reporters across Latin America.

Argentina:

• The differences within Argentina’s government came to light with the approval of the deal with the IMF to allow Argentina to refinance a debt of more than $44 billion, and the volatility within the ruling coalition could jeopardize the fulfillment of the economic goals agreed with the Fund, according to experts consulted by Bloomberg Línea.

Brazil:

• São Bento do Sul, in Santa Catarina , is the Braziiian city with the best user rating in the Uber travel app, with 4.97 stars, according to a survey released by the company this week. Next are tied Umuarama, Valença, Guarapuava, and Varginha, all with 4.96 stars. The ratings in the passenger travel application vary from one to five stars in terms of quality of service.

Ecuador:

• Ecuador’s air market has much potential for growth, but lacks competitiveness, according to Peter Cerdá, IATA director, in an interview with Bloomberg Línea.

El Salvador:

• El Salvador’s staple food prices saw their sharpest rise in a decade in February, up 9.45% compared with the same month of 2021, according to the central bank (BCR).

Mexico:

• Mexico will maintain its crude oil exports at around one million barrels per day to take advantage of the recent price rises, temporarily delaying President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s plan to cut oil exports in half.
• Analysts estimate that it will be almost impossible for state oil company Pemex to achieve its production goal of 1.9 million barrels per day this year.
• The capital city’s new airport, AIFA, will open on Monday, amid much fanfare and criticism.

Read More: The Long and Winding Road to Mexico City’s New Airport

Uruguay:

• Banco Itaú has announced its participation as a majority shareholder of Resonance Uruguay, a company focused on point-of-sale payment systems. The Brazilian company bank said that, through its parent company OCA, it will hold 56% of the shares and that the closing of the operation is expected for the second half of the year, after approval by the Brazilian and Uruguayan central banks.

Venezuela:

• Venezuelan bonds are attracting buyers after relations with the U.S. have begun to warm. Since March 4, Venezuela’s bonds maturing in 2027 rose to around 9.4 cents per dollar, up from six cents.