The Bank of Mexico (Banxico) agreed to assess in its next decisions the magnitude of the increases to its key interest rate according to the prevailing circumstances, although it admits that there is an increase in inflationary expectations.
In its minutes of the most recent monetary policy meeting, the Governing Board of the Central Bank indicates that the expectations of general and subjacent inflation for 2022 increased again.
“The majority of the Board pointed out that the inflation of food merchandise registered the greatest increase, standing at 12.09% in July. One of them emphasized that this component has grown in double digits for five months and that the outlook is complex, even if food merchandise prices are excluded from the calculation of subjacent inflation, as is the case in the United States,” the document states.
Two weeks ago, Banxico raised its reference interest rate for the tenth consecutive time, to take it to a historical maximum of 8.5%, a unanimous decision and in line with market expectations, which expected another increase of 75 basic points (bp). in the cost of credits.
Inflation stood at 8.62% at the annual rate in the first half of August, more than expected.
Regarding domestic financial markets, most emphasized the resilience of the exchange rate despite episodes of volatility.
“He highlighted that the resilience of the national currency in relation to other currencies was due, in part, to the wide interest rate differential adjusted for volatility with respect to the United States. He also highlighted the country’s solid macroeconomic fundamentals,” the minutes said.
With information from Reuters
