Brazil, South Africa currencies rally as Trump signals trade talks calm

Key topics:Brazil, South Africa, Mexico currencies rise as trade concerns ease.Argentina peso jumps 5% after US $20B intervention; copper boosts Chile, Peru.Asia FX rebounds on Trump trade talks; Europe currencies pressured by euro..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Maria Elena Vizcaino and Selcuk Gokoluk.Currencies from Brazil, South Africa and Mexico outperformed emerging-market peers on Monday as trade concerns eased on a day marked by thin trading volumes, with the US bond market closed for a holiday.Investor appetite for riskier assets grew during the Americas session, with the real and the rand climbing roughly 1% each, supported by higher commodity prices and hints that the Trump administration is open to negotiate with China. Still, the currency gauge for the group fell and the benchmark stock index, heavily weighted toward Asia, plunged to the lowest in more than a week. “We’re seeing a pullback of everything that sold off on Friday: high carry FX, commodities, equities,” Barclays analyst Erick Martinez Magana said. “We’re going back to the environment that’s favorable for carry.” .Read more:.FT: Emerging markets roar back with biggest stock rally in 15 years.President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance signaled openness to future trade negotiations over the weekend, while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he still expects a meeting between the two country leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea later this month. A gauge of Asian currencies rebounded from the lowest since May, though the Taiwanese dollar underperformed peers..“Currencies closely tied to China’s economic outlook and global trade, such as the won, Taiwanese dollar and Malaysian ringgit could come under some pressure,” said Lloyd Chan, a strategist at MUFG Bank Ltd. The Argentinian peso jumped more than 5% to 1,350 per dollar on Monday, as local markets reopened following the $20 billion US intervention last week. Elsewhere, the Chilean peso and Peruvian sol also gained, as the price of copper — both nations’ biggest export — climbed. Data showed China’s imports of the red metal and iron ore jumped in September to the highest level this year.Even though the real is recouping about half of the losses in the prior session, it will likely remain under pressure as fiscal concerns cloud the outlook into year-end. Traders are uneasy with government efforts to expand social benefits ahead of 2026 without clarity on how spending fits within next year’s fiscal targets.Currencies from Eastern Europe, meantime, were under pressure, dragged down by the common currency, which faced a double-threat from the bid for dollars and France’s political crisis. Elsewhere, the Israeli shekel gave back some of the advance this month in anticipation of a peace deal with Hamas..Read more:.South Africa eyes trade in Africa and beyond to counter US tariff impact.While dollar bond markets were closed for the holiday, Senegal raised 450 billion CFA francs ($795 million) selling bonds on a regional exchange. It’s the government’s latest maneuver to grapple with funding challenges after a hidden-debt scandal constrained its access to international capital markets. .© 2025 Bloomberg L.P.

Brazil, South Africa currencies rally as Trump signals trade talks calm

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