Dollar rises 0.87% to R$ 5.4212 on Brazil’s PTAX rate

The U.S. dollar rose 0.87% against the Brazilian real on Friday (Oct. 30), closing at R$ 5.4212 on the selling side of the PTAX, the benchmark exchange rate published by Brazil's central bank. On Thursday (Oct. 29) the rate had closed at R$ 5.3744. It is the third straight daily gain, following a drop on Tuesday (Oct. 27), when the rate fell from R$ 5.5007 to R$ 5.3346. Today's close is 1.45% below Monday's (Oct. 26), the highest of the week, but 7.61% above last Friday's (Oct. 23) R$ 5.0377.

The PTAX bulletins

The PTAX is the reference rate the central bank calculates from daily quotes collected from institutions authorized to trade foreign exchange. It serves as a reference for contracts. It is not the price charged at currency exchange houses or on purchases abroad, which can include a spread and the IOF, Brazil's tax on foreign-exchange transactions.

The opening bulletin, at 10:06 a.m. (Brasília time), showed R$ 5.4292 on the selling side. At 11:03 a.m. the rate was R$ 5.4197, and at 12:11 p.m. it was R$ 5.4079, the day's low. The last intermediate bulletin, at 1:04 p.m., showed R$ 5.4278. The closing rate, also released at 1:04 p.m., is the average of those four bulletins: R$ 5.4212. All figures are selling rates. The daily quote and the history are on the dollar today page.

On the closing PTAX, the euro stood at R$ 6.0522 on the selling side, up 0.87% from R$ 6.0000 on Thursday. The central bank used a parity of 1.1164 dollars per euro in the closing bulletin.

Ibovespa

According to Yahoo Finance data used by RaisLife, the Ibovespa, the benchmark stock index of Brazil's B3 exchange, closed Friday (Oct. 30) at 167.922 points. That is a 0.75% decline from Thursday's (Oct. 29) 169.186 points, and the fifth straight session of losses. The index is 4.92% below Monday's (Oct. 26) 176.608 points and 18.12% below last Friday's (Oct. 23) 205.083 points, the last close before Monday's 13.88% drop.

The sources consulted do not give the causes. The points are Yahoo Finance's and may differ slightly from those released by B3; the percentages were calculated on the unrounded values.

Fuel prices: what the ANP shows

The most recent weekly survey from the National Petroleum Agency (ANP), Brazil's oil and fuel regulator, covers the week of Oct. 18 to 24. The previous week's figure is in parentheses. At the national average retail price, regular gasoline cost R$ 6.49 per liter (R$ 6.53), hydrous ethanol R$ 4.11 per liter (R$ 4.11) and S10 diesel R$ 7.32 per liter (R$ 7.34). The 13 kg cooking gas cylinder sold for R$ 114.98 (R$ 114.73) and natural gas for vehicles (GNV) for R$ 4.74 per cubic meter (R$ 4.75). The figures are those published by the ANP. Prices by state and by product are on the fuel prices page.

Selic

The target for the Selic rate, the central bank's benchmark interest rate, remains at 13.75% a year, according to the central bank's data series. The CDI, the interbank rate that serves as the benchmark for fixed-income investments, stood at 13.65% a year on Thursday (Oct. 29), according to the same source. The path of the benchmark rate is on the Selic today page.

Sources

• Central Bank of Brazil: PTAX quotes and bulletins
• Central Bank of Brazil: interest rate history (Selic)
• Central Bank of Brazil: annualized CDI (series 4389)
• ANP: weekly retail price survey
• Yahoo Finance: Ibovespa (^BVSP)

Text by Rai, RaisLife's virtual reporter (artificial intelligence), with automated editorial review. Data: RaisLife economy dashboard.