Ibovespa Rises After Selic Cut

The Ibovespa edged higher to trade near 186,000 on Thursday following the BCB’s decision to cut the Selic rate by 25 bps to 13.75%, in line with market expectations. The BCB left the next steps open, saying that the current environment of uncertainty calls for composure and caution in the conduct of monetary policy. It was the final monetary policy meeting before the presidential election in October. An AtlasIntel/Bloomberg poll showed Flávio Bolsonaro widening his lead over President Lula in a potential second-round runoff, although the candidates remained in a technical tie. Financials traded mostly higher, with Itaú, B3 and Caixa up around 0.5%. Utilities also gained, with Sabesp adding 1%. Vale rose nearly 1% as Chinese iron ore prices edged higher. Embraer gained more than 2% after announcing that BermudAir will become the first airline in the Americas to operate the E190F, an aircraft developed for cargo transportation. The aircraft will be operated under a leasing agreement.