On yet another day of instability in the financial market, the dollar surpassed the R$5.50 barrier for the first time since October, reaching its highest value since the beginning of August. The stock market fell again and approached 157 thousand points.
The commercial dollar ended this Wednesday (17) sold at R$5.522, an increase of R$0.06 (+1.09%). The price rose throughout the session, reaching R$5.53 at the day’s high, around 2pm.
Rising for the fourth time in a row, the US currency closed at its highest value since August 1st. The currency rises 3.5% in December, but falls 10.63% in 2025.
The stock market also had a turbulent session. B3’s Ibovespa index closed at 157,327 points, down 0.79%. This was the second consecutive drop in the indicator.
As in the last few days, Both internal and external factors influenced the financial market. On the international scene, the dollar rose slightly against the main international currencies amid uncertainty about interest rates in the United States after the country created more jobs than expected in November.
The Brazilian political and economic climate, however, weighed more on the negotiations. Negotiations surrounding pre-candidacies for next year’s presidential elections put pressure on the market. In addition to the uncertainty regarding the beginning of the fall in the Selic Rate (basic interest rates for the economy) by the Central Bank (BC).
The minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) meeting, released on Tuesday (16), did not make it clear when the BC will start reducing the Selic. High interest rates encourage the migration of investments from the stock market to fixed income.
In relation to the exchange rate, remittances of profits from branches of foreign companies to other countries, typical at the end of the year, increase the demand for dollars, putting pressure on the exchange rate.
*With information from Reuters
