FX.co ★ Ibovespa Gives Up Record High

On Friday, Brazil's Ibovespa index registered a decline of 0.5%, closing at 164,800, as interest rate futures soared after stronger-than-anticipated results from the IBC-Br report. The IBC-Br saw a 0.7% increase in November, surpassing the 0.3% forecast and marking the most significant monthly growth since March. This result underscores persistent economic strength, highlighted by record low unemployment rates, robust Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) figures, and a resurgence in retail activity, all of which temper the urgency for policy easing. These factors adversely affected domestic cyclical stocks, with particular weakness in the retail and banking sectors. Shares of Assaí, Itaú, and Bradesco each dropped more than 1%. Overall, broad losses resulted in a slight dip for the index as markets processed the outlook of continued strong growth alongside a still stringent policy landscape, preceding the Central Bank’s meeting scheduled for January 27–28.