MERIDA, Mexico, March 17 (Reuters) – Bank of Mexico Governor Victoria Rodriguez said on Friday the Mexican banking system is sound and vowed to remain vigilant, but stressed there was no current reason for authorities to intervene .
Rodriguez, a former deputy finance minister, was asked about possible contagion from the collapse of U.S. lenders Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and market turmoil that gripped Credit Suisse Group AG ( CSGN.S ).
The failed U.S. banks were regional lenders and have no systemic impact, Rodriguez told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of Mexico’s annual banking convention in the southern city of Merida.
She said, “The relationship between them and the Mexican system is practically non-existent… We don’t see a contagion or banks that are in a similar situation in our country.”
Asked about the latest inflation data in Mexico and what it could mean for interest rates, Rodriguez noted the February inflation data was good news, underscoring that upcoming data t must be considered before the bank’s next monetary policy decision.
“There is still relevant information that will emerge and we will analyze it,” Rodriguez said.
The rise in Mexico’s core consumer prices slowed by more than expected to 8.29% in the year to February, data from statistics agency INEGI showed last week, providing some relief as Latin America’s second-largest economy struggles with high inflation and high interest rates.
Reporting by Valentine Hilaire and Noe Torres; Editing by Anthony Esposito and Cynthia Osterman
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