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Mexican peso down as country unveils tariffs on U.S. food, steel

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Mexican peso down as country unveils tariffs on U.S. food, steel

* The Mexican peso tumbled as the country unveiled a detailed list of tariffs on U.S. food and steel products in retaliation for U.S. levies on aluminum and steel. As of 11:23 a.m. ET on June 5, the peso slid 1.47% to 20.3671.

* U.S. President Donald Trump is looking to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement by dealing with Canada and Mexico separately, according to the top White House economic adviser. Larry Kudlow, the director of the U.S. National Economic Council, added Trump "prefers bilateral negotiations." Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo said that there were "good probabilities" that the three parties would "reach a solution" to a new NAFTA, Reuters reported.

MEXICO AND CENTRAL AMERICA

* The banking licenses for the Mexico-based offices of Banco Popular Español SA, Haitong Bank SA and Banco do Brasil SA were revoked by Mexico's Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit in conjunction with banking regulator CNBV, after the banks decided to close their Mexican operations, La Jornada reported.

* Mexican mortgage investment vehicle FHipo has formed a partnership with digital platform Smart Lending aimed at boosting the country's housing credit market, El Economista reported. As part of the accord, FHipo will invest between 300 million and 500 million pesos to finance between 25 and 30 new home loans per month via the platform from 2019.

* Mobile payment and digital wallet service Samsung Pay has attracted 200,000 users since it launched in Mexico four months ago and aims to add more by signing alliances with up to 90 financial institutions, according to Francisco Martínez, the company's senior manager for value-added services, Notimex reported. Samsung Pay started with the incorporation of six larger banks, giving it about 50% of total payment means coverage, a figure it wants to raise to about 75%.

* Expectations for a rate hike by Mexico's central bank at its June monetary policy meeting have increased due to changes in the global outlook, according to the latest survey of analysts by Banco Nacional de México SA Integrante del Grupo Financiero Banamex, El Financiero reported. The poll gave a median forecast for the benchmark rate to be increased to 7.75%, two months earlier than the previous survey had predicted.

* Costa Rica-based Banco Popular y de Desarrollo Comunal SA appointed Maurilio Aguilar Rojas as assistant corporate general manager, effective June 20, with tenure running for five years. He is currently the bank's corporate risk director.

CARIBBEAN

* Barbados' Prime Minister Mia Mottley said an announced debt restructuring was "needed to stabilize the country," given recently-discovered financial debt, low bank reserves and debt payments coming due soon, the Financial Times reported.

BRAZIL

* Julius Bär Gruppe AG said it has completed the purchase of a 95% stake in São Paulo, Brazil-based independent wealth manager Reliance Group. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Reliance Group has client assets of about 18 billion reais, or approximately CHF5 billion, mainly in advisory mandates, according to Julius Bär.

* Brazilian tax appeals board CARF has held up a tax assessment of 2.7 billion reais tied to the 2008 merger between Itaú and Unibanco that created Itaú Unibanco Holding SA, Valor Econômico reported. The decision was a surprise, with Itaú's 2017 annual report stating that loss risks from merger-related tax assessments were "remote."

* Brazil's National Monetary Council has extended a deadline for banks to start demanding proof that farmers are registered in the Rural Environmental Registry as a condition for rural credit, Valor Econômico reported. The new requirement was due to come into effect on June 1, but the deadline was extended to January 1, 2019.

* Caixa Econômica Federal is to start selling real estate investments recovered from clients in default as part of its efforts to boost its capital and generate new sources of mortgage financing, Reuters reported. Next week, it will publish a notice for the first auction of some 6,000 properties worth 1.1 billion reais, which is due to be held in August.

* Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social has made changes to its Climate Fund Program that will allow individuals to be granted financing to install solar heating systems and co-generation systems, Valor Econômico reported. The loans will only be available indirectly via state-owned banks.

* A board member at Brazil's Cade competition watchdog, Cristiane Alkmin Schmidt, has called on the central bank to reject a deal that would give Itaú Unibanco Holding SA a 74.9% stake in XP Investimentos SA and a 49.9% stake in its voting capital by 2022, Valor Econômico reported, citing her comments to a Senate committee. The deal was passed by Cade earlier this year, but Alkmin Schmidt voted to block it.

ANDEAN

* Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra said he is considering three candidates to replace David Tuesta as finance minister, Reuters reported. Cabinet chief Jose Arista is reportedly among one of the candidates, Vizcarra said.

* The Organization of American States called an extraordinary assembly meeting to discuss suspending Venezuela from the group following the re-election of President Nicolas Maduro in May, Reuters reported.

* The integration between Citibank's Colombian operations and the local Scotiabank unit Banco Colpatria Multibanca Colpatria SA could start as soon as this month following the expected authorization by the financial superintendent, La República reported, citing Colpatria sources. The deal for Colpatria to buy Citibank's consumer and small and medium-sized corporate operations in the Andean country was announced in January.

* Colombia's Financial Superintendent has issued new regulations that will force banks to report cyberattacks or other data breaches that could affect their customers or the financial system as a whole, La República reported. Under the measures, due to come into effect in six months, banks will also need to train staff to deal with cybersecurity issues and establish specialist units.

SOUTHERN CONE

* Argentine fintech company SOS Genial, which is focused on the northwestern region of the country, plans to install its own cash machines and make them operational before the end of the year, after reaching an agreement with the Red Link ATM network, El Cronista reported. The company will become the first fintech to do so since the central bank passed new regulations aimed at boosting competition.

* Talks between the Argentine government and the International Monetary Fund over standby financing are "well advanced," according to the Fund's regional director, Alejandro Werner, La Tercera reported, quoting an IMF statement. The publication said the parties had agreed on a target for the fiscal deficit to be reduced to 2.5% of GDP this year. Meanwhile, Argentina has also entered talks with China to possibly increase a credit swap agreement established under the previous administration, for support to the country, the Financial Times reported, citing comments from cabinet chief Marcos Peña.

* Chilean cryptocurrency trader Orionx has filed a suit before the TDLC competition tribunal against six leading banks for alleged abuse of dominant position for excluding the company from the digital payment market, Diario Financiero reported. Orionx also demanded that Banco del Estado de Chile, one of the respondents, to reopen the cryptocurrency trader's account.

IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

* Middle East & Africa: Fitch lifts Qatar outlook; Mashreqbank seeks Saudi banking license

* Europe: BoE wants banks to draw resolution plans; US funds bid for Banco BPM loans

Helen Popper contributed to this article.

The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 8:00 a.m. São Paulo time, and scans news sources published in English, Portuguese and Spanish. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.