PULSE NEWS MEXICO

The Mexican peso lost ground against the U.S. dollar on Monday, March 13, briefly hitting an exchange rate of 18.92 per dollar, as a result of fears over the collapse late last week of U.S.-based Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

Just one week earlier, the peso hit its highest level in five years, trading at as low as 17.25 to the dollar, thanks to Mexico’s relatively high interest rates, tight fiscal policy and investment opportunities as a result of its geographic proximity to the United States.

But on Monday, the peso slid dramatically in early trading by more than 3.5 percent against the dollar because of traders fearing market contagion from the U.S. bank collapses.