EMERGING MARKETS-Global slowdown concerns spark sell-off across Latam markets

* Latam currencies -1.7%, stocks -3.3% * Brazil party official shot dead in pre-election violence * Argentina’s new economy minister targets ‘order and balance’ (Updates prices) By Anisha Sircar and Devik Jain July 11 (Reuters) – Major Latin American currencies and regional stocks slid on Monday, with exporters Chile and Colombia hitting record lows as commodities prices fell and the dollar surged on growing jitters about a global economic slowdown. Chile’s peso fell 1.85% to a record low of 992.96 against the dollar as prices of its top export copper shed 3%. Oil-exporter Colombia’s peso also sank, to an all-time low of 4569.28 against the dollar, as crude prices weakened on demand fears sparked by fresh COVID-19 curbs in China. Commodity prices rallied sharply earlier this year as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine stoked supply concerns. “The Latam world benefited at the beginning of the year from rapid rate increases and rising commodity prices … (but) the high inflation we’ve seen is now going to result in much lower growth than we’ve become used to,” said Christian Lawrence, senior cross-asset strategist at Rabobank. “The Latam tightening cycle is reaching its maturity, so some of that additional benefit from the rate of change is fading as well.” Among the last major regional rate hikes expected by analysts, a Reuters poll called for Chile to raise its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday to 9.5% from 9%. Monetary tightening cycles in developed markets and a strong dollar have pinched EM currencies, with MSCI’s Latam FX index logging losses for five weeks out of the last six. The dollar rose 0.9% on Monday and hovered at two-decade highs on expectations that the Federal Reserve will continue to aggressively raise rates. Brazil’s real slipped 2.1% after rising for two straight sessions. A local official from Brazil’s leftist opposition was reportedly shot dead on Saturday by a federal prison guard shouting support for right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro. “When you look to Brazil, there’s the room to see a lot more weakness being priced in … the polarization (in elections) will end up being reflected with more social unrest,” Lawrence said. Mexico’s peso dipped 1.3% after Moody’s on Friday cut the country’s credit rating by one notch, citing weak investment prospects and increased structural rigidities to constrain economic activity. Meanwhile, Argentina’s new Economy Minister Silvina Batakis said she would target cutting the country’s high fiscal deficit, pledging “order and balance” in a bid to tame spiraling inflation, tumbling markets and growing pressure on the peso . Latam stocks slumped 3.3%. Heavyweight Sao Paulo shares led losses, with Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA tumbling 7.5% after the Brazilian airline released a downbeat second-quarter earnings preview. Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1858 GMT: Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 979.93 -1.96 MSCI LatAm 1974.96 -3.32 Brazil Bovespa 98173.11 -2.11 Mexico IPC 47379.02 -0.43 Chile IPSA 5071.58 -0.81 Argentina MerVal 104668.79 -1.116 Colombia COLCAP 1348.15 -0.5 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 5.3682 -1.87 Mexico peso 20.7103 -1.29 Chile peso 992.4 -1.94 Colombia peso 4569.48 -3.47 Peru sol 3.9511 -1.35 Argentina peso(interbank) 127.3500 -0.42 Argentina peso (parallel) 263 3.80 (Reporting by Anisha Sircar and Devik Jain in Bengaluru; editing by Barbara Lewis and Richard Chang)