The dollar was rising against the real this Tuesday, and surpassed the 5.20 reais mark, at the end of a quarter marked by caution abroad and political tension in Brazil.
At 10:21, the dollar advanced 0.12%, to 5.1878 reais on sale. In a session of uncertainty, the currency touched 5.2083 reais at the day's high, but fell to 5.1698 at the low before returning to close to 5.20 reais.
At B3, the main dollar futures contract had a positive variation of 0.03%, at 5.197 reais.
“Concern about the coronavirus continues, especially with the first results from March showing the real impact on investors,” brokerage Empiricus said in a post on Twitter. The effects of the pandemic on supply chains and business activity are already a factor that has boosted the dollar by almost 30% against the Brazilian currency in 2020, with an imminent global recession increasing demand for safe assets.
“But, while the world continues to lock its doors and paralyze its operations, China, the initial epicenter of the disease, is beginning to recover,” added Empiricus.
China's industrial activity unexpectedly expanded in March after a collapse the previous month. China's official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to 52.0 in March, from a record low of 35.7 in February, the country's National Statistics Agency reported on Tuesday.
The indicator was above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.
Faced with international caution, but still keeping an eye on timid signs of recovery in the world's second largest economy, the dollar had mixed behavior against risky pairs this Tuesday. The South African rand and Turkish lira rose slightly against the US currency, while the Mexican peso was close to stability and the Australian dollar lost more than 1%.
In the domestic scenario, President Jair Bolsonaro's position on the response to Covid-19 remained in the focus of investors.
Recently, Bolsonaro has reinforced his opinion that economic activities cannot stop, and that people outside the disease risk group should return to work normally, despite recommendations from health authorities and regional governments, which encourage social isolation. .
According to analysts, disagreements between Brazilian authorities on how to approach the pandemic contribute to uncertainty, driving the search for security.
The day before, the North American spot currency recorded a gain of 1.47%, at 5.1815 reais on sale, the second highest closing price.
Source: Agricultural News
