Nervousness around US interest rates once again put pressure on the financial market this Monday (5th). The dollar surpassed the BRL 5 barrier and closed at the highest level in almost a month. The stock market fell almost 3% and reached the lowest level since the beginning of January.
The commercial dollar ended this Monday sold at R$5.115, up by R$0.127 (+2.54%). The price operated higher throughout the session. At the peak of the day, around 12 noon, it reached R$ 5.13.
The US currency is at its highest value since May 12, when it closed at R$5.14. The currency accumulates a high of 7.6% in June, having risen 7% in the last six trading sessions alone. In 2022, the dollar drops 8.27%.
The stock market also had a turbulent day. The B3 Ibovespa index closed at 102,598 points, down 2.73%. The indicator was influenced by the North American stock exchanges, which also had a strong fall. The Ibovespa is at its lowest level since January 10th.
Tomorrow (14) and Wednesday (15), the Federal Reserve (Fed, North American Central Bank) meets to decide the basic interest rates in the United States. With inflation at the highest level in 40 years, due to the war between Russia and Ukraine and the bottlenecks in global production resulting from the covid-19 pandemic, some investors believe that the rate could be raised by 0.75 percentage point, more than the last highs, by 0.5 point.
Higher-than-expected interest rate hikes could cause recession in the US economy. This knocked down US stock markets, causing a domino effect that dragged the global financial market. The Dow Jones Industrial Companies Index fell 2.79%. The Nasdaq, owned by tech companies, lost a hefty 4.68%. The S&P 500, of the 500 largest companies, fell 3.88% on Monday.
*With information from Reuters
