Market Data 
- Mexican Peso dips over 1%; USD/MXN rises from 19.86 as Senate nears judicial reform vote.
- Foreign institutions and ratings agencies suggest economic risks and potential downgrade if reform is approved.
- Weaker-than-forecast inflation raises likelihood of Banxico rate cut on September 26; US Fed anticipated to cut rates by 25 bps soon.
The Mexican Peso depreciated over 1% against the American Dollar on Tuesday amid increasing tensions surrounding the Senate’s approval of judicial reform. At the time of writing, the USD/MXN trades at 20.07 after bouncing off a daily low of 19.86.
The Mexican currency will remain volatile throughout the week as the Senate discusses the judicial reform. On Monday, a news article in El Sol de Mexico said Miguel Angel Yunez Marquez, Senator of the opposition party Partido Accion Nacional (PAN), would be the vote needed to approve the reform.
The Senate will begin formally reading the judicial bill at around 19:00 GMT. It’s expected that it will be voted on Wednesday or Thursday.
Foreign institutions had expressed that the reform could deteriorate the state of law and the country’s credibility. Julius Baer warned that ratings agencies could change Mexico’s creditworthiness. They added their name to Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, JP Morgan, Citibanamex and Fitch by warning of the economic and financial impact regarding the approval of judicial reform.
Data-wise, the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) reported on Monday showed that Mexican inflation was softer than expected, increasing the chances that the Bank of Mexico (Banxico) will cut interest rates at the September 26 meeting.
Kimberley Sperrfechter, an analyst at Capital Economics, commented that the latest inflation report and the likelihood of a Fed rate cut next week “mean that Banxico is on track to lower its policy rate by another 25 [basis points] at its meeting this month.”
Across the border, a Reuters poll revealed that 92 of 101 economists expect the Federal Reserve (Fed) to lower interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) at the September 17-18 meeting. The US economic docket has been scarce through the first couple of days, yet traders are eyeing the release of the latest inflation report. The data is expected to reassure investors that the Fed will cut rates at the upcoming meeting.
Daily digest market movers: Mexican Peso weakens on judicial reform expected vote
- Mexico’s inflation in August dipped below 5% on headline figures on an annual basis, while core inflation stood firm near 4% YoY.
- Mexico’s economic docket will gain traction on Wednesday, September 11, with the release of Industrial Production data. Later, the Senate is expected to approve the judiciary reform.
- September’s Citibanamex Survey showed that Banxico is expected to lower rates to 10.25% in 2024 and to 8.25% in 2025. The USD/MXN exchange rate is forecast to end 2024 at 19.50 and 2025 at 19.85.
- US CPI is expected to dip from 2.9% to 2.6% YoY in August, while core CPI is projected to remain at 3.2%.
- Data from the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) suggests the Fed will cut at least 108 basis points this year, up from 104.5 a day ago, according to the fed funds rate futures contract for December 2024.
USD/MXN technical outlook: Mexican Peso tumbles as USD/MXN rises above 20.00
The USD/MXN uptrend has extended above the 20.00 figure, with the exotic pair meandering around the figure after reaching a daily high of 20.13. Momentum hints that buyers are stepping in, as depicted by the Relative Strength Index (RSI) aiming upward and cracking the latest peak.
If the USD/MXN holds to gains above 20.00, the next ceiling level would be the YTD high at 20.22. On further strength, the pair could challenge the daily high of September 28, 2022, at 20.57. If those two levels are surrendered, the next stop would be the swing high at 20.82 on August 2, 2022, ahead of 21.00.
Conversely, if USD/MXN weakens further, the first support would be 19.50. A breach of the latter will expose the August 23 swing low of 19.02 before giving way to sellers eyeing a test of the 50-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) at 18.65.
Banxico FAQs
The Bank of Mexico, also known as Banxico, is the country’s central bank. Its mission is to preserve the value of Mexico’s currency, the Mexican Peso (MXN), and to set the monetary policy. To this end, its main objective is to maintain low and stable inflation within target levels – at or close to its target of 3%, the midpoint in a tolerance band of between 2% and 4%.
The main tool of the Banxico to guide monetary policy is by setting interest rates. When inflation is above target, the bank will attempt to tame it by raising rates, making it more expensive for households and businesses to borrow money and thus cooling the economy. Higher interest rates are generally positive for the Mexican Peso (MXN) as they lead to higher yields, making the country a more attractive place for investors. On the contrary, lower interest rates tend to weaken MXN. The rate differential with the USD, or how the Banxico is expected to set interest rates compared with the US Federal Reserve (Fed), is a key factor.
Banxico meets eight times a year, and its monetary policy is greatly influenced by decisions of the US Federal Reserve (Fed). Therefore, the central bank’s decision-making committee usually gathers a week after the Fed. In doing so, Banxico reacts and sometimes anticipates monetary policy measures set by the Federal Reserve. For example, after the Covid-19 pandemic, before the Fed raised rates, Banxico did it first in an attempt to diminish the chances of a substantial depreciation of the Mexican Peso (MXN) and to prevent capital outflows that could destabilize the country.
