Weekend Edition: Gold, crude and a broad regional rally
Latin American equities and currencies firmed almost across the board as gold, silver and Brent surged and Wall Street slipped, with Brazilian strategics driving most of the week's deal flow.
Equity markets| MARKET | CLOSE | WEEK | READ |
|---|
| Ibovespa · Brazil | 171,032 | +2.45% | Pushing into record territory, real firmer too | | S&P/BMV IPC · Mexico | 65,729 | +2.07% | Mexico's quiet grind keeps going | | S&P Merval · Argentina | 2,913,184 | −1.16% | The region's lone decliner as peso slips | | Chile · ECH (ETF) | 41.44 | +2.78% | Higher even with copper flat | | Peru · EPU (ETF) | 94.00 | +5.99% | Best performer in the region | | S&P 500 · US | 7,674 | −1.43% | Wall Street lagged the emerging tape |
Currencies · per US dollar| PAIR | CLOSE | WEEK | READ |
|---|
| USD/BRL | 5.1387 | −1.60% | Real among the week's FX winners | | USD/MXN | 16.8950 | −0.72% | Peso firmer, calmly | | USD/CLP | 914.28 | −0.02% | Essentially unchanged on the week | | USD/COP | 3,037.27 | −3.32% | Biggest FX mover, carried by crude | | USD/PEN | 3.3521 | −0.51% | Sol nudges a touch stronger | | USD/ARS | 1,499.00 | +0.77% | Peso keeps grinding weaker |
Commodities| INSTRUMENT | CLOSE | WEEK | READ |
|---|
| Gold · spot | 4,624 | +5.56% | Safe-haven bid roars back | | Silver · spot | 69.47 | +6.89% | Outrunning even gold | | Copper · lb | 6.58 | −0.30% | Barely moved, ignored the metals rally | | Brent · bbl | 94.39 | +6.63% | Crude's big up week |
Deals of the week| TARGET | ACQUIRER | COUNTRY | VALUE | SECTOR | READ |
|---|
| Kenvue Brazil brands (Carefree, Sempre Livre, o.b.) | Essity | Brazil | US$284m | Consumer Health | Swedish buyer scoops iconic Brazilian shelf brands | | Pilgrim's Pride (remaining 18%) | JBS | Brazil | US$1.2bn | Food | JBS moves to mop up the minority | | Avibras | J&F (via Globe Investimentos) | Brazil | Undisclosed | Defense & Industrials | Batista holding takes full control of distressed defense maker | | Syonet | Webmotors | Brazil | Undisclosed | Software | Automotive CRM tuck-in for the marketplace | | Ecourbis (additional 5.8%) | Orizon | Brazil | R$69m | Waste & ESG | Consolidating grip on São Paulo waste asset | | Transcopa (70%) | Tegma | Brazil | R$99.4m | Logistics | Buys its way into São Sebastião port | | TailyAds | THE LED | Brazil | Undisclosed | Retail Media | In-store media platform bolts on commercial intelligence |
Capital raising| COMPANY | INVESTORS | STAGE | COUNTRY | AMOUNT | READ |
|---|
| Yuno | Series B lead investors | Series B | Colombia | US$45m | Payments orchestrator adds fresh growth capital | | Galgo | Uber | Strategic | Chile | Undisclosed | Uber backs the mobility-financing fintech | | Ascenty | Goldman Sachs, Itaú BBA, Bradesco BBI (arrangers) | Primary minority raise | Brazil | US$1bn | Data-center builder taps capital for the AI wave | | Flash | Battery Ventures, Kevin Efrusy | Series D | Brazil | R$150m | Benefits platform funds its AI push | | FS Florestal | Leto Capital | FIDC | Brazil | R$200m | First receivables fund to finance eucalyptus supply | | Omnichat | Kaszek | Planned round | Brazil | R$200m | Kaszek-backed startup lines up capital for M&A |
Market data: Yahoo Finance, Alpha Vantage.
Chart of the Week
Latin America's EV revolution is made in China. While the US and EU block them with tariffs, Chinese brands now own Latin America's EV market, and the factories are starting to follow. Chart: Latinometrics.
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