As the day began and despite a slight drop in its first operations, the price of the dollar in Colombia closed its first session in September with a strong upward trend, triggered by the need for good news in international markets, while at the local level, investors are waiting for the tax reform debates to begin in Congress.
According to the Colombian Stock Exchange, This currency closed with a last price of 4,488 pesos, 59 more than the closing value of yesterday, Wednesday, when it managed to end the month of August with a slight rise. With this result, the dollar is very close to the barrier of 4,500 pesos and fuels fears of a new margin of historical highs.
Meanwhile, the average cost for the US currency was 4,467 pesos and 73 cents, a figure that also exceeds by 45.6 the Representative Market Rate set for today by the Financial Superintendence at 4,422.77. This upward trend, according to analysts, It is explained by the fear among investors of a possible recession in the main economic powers of the world.
“Let us remember that on September 13 we have inflation data in the United States and that data will be key, since At the beginning of August we saw a fact that gave some peace of mind and if a new decline in this indicator is achieved, it might generate some calm within the Federal Reserve and of course in the markets. It was already clear that the rate hike will take place despite the economic deterioration that may be generated,” explained Juan Eduardo Nates, an analyst at Credicorp Capital.
In other values registered by the dollar in this session, the maximum level reached by this currency was 4,488 pesos with 90 cents, despite the collapse it suffered around 9:00 am, when it fell to a minimum of 4,436 pesos with 40 cents. cents, to then begin to rise strongly and end as already indicated.
Nevertheless, It should not be overlooked that the Colombian peso is not the only one that is losing ground once morest the US currency, which during this day stood at 109.55 points, which places it at its highest value in 20 years compared to other world currencies.
A backlash of this was experienced with the Japanese yen, which sank this Thursday to its lowest level in 24 years once morest the dollar, which benefited from its safe-haven status in a turbulent market, and also rose once morest the euro and the pound.
The Japanese currency, also weighed down by the very accommodative policy of the Bank of Japan, lost 0.73% and stood at 140.00 yen per dollar towards the end of the followingnoon. The collapse of the yen, which has lost more than 20% in a year, is due, according to money changers, to Japan’s very flexible monetary policy.
Contrary to the United States or Europe, where inflation has soared and reached over 10% in the United Kingdom, inflation in Japan was 2.4% year-on-year in July, very close to the 2% target of the large central banks, prompting the Bank of Japan to passivity.
Although at this moment the situation in Colombia is stable, despite rising inflation, and the pressures on the dollar are mainly abroad, The expectation in the national market is focused for now on the beginning of the tax reform debate in Congress. This has been an issue that has generated conflicting opinions, since while some praise its benefits, other sectors point out that it will seriously affect the country’s economy.
For now, the greatest fear is that the new tax burden that will be imposed on the country will scare off investors and generate a flight of capital to other countries with less strict measures in terms of paying taxes. Likewise, businessmen maintain that contrary to what the national government says, this does hit the most humble families, with taxes on sugary drinks.
