Luis Caputo explained the reason why the dollar has risen in recent days

The Minister of Economy, Luis "Toto" Caputo, spoke about the recent increase in the dollar, mentioning the responsibility of the banks, as he detailed the mechanism that led to the reduction of the interest rate and an increase in liquidity, which put pressure on the exchange rate.

"LEFIs were supposed to be exchanged by the banks for LECAPS. But the banks, afraid of losing daily liquidity, didn't go all in and preferred to make numbers," explained the head of the Treasury through his account on the social network X.

It is worth noting that on Tuesday, July 15, the official dollar reversed the upward trend it had shown in previous sessions and fell to $1,282, after having reached a record of $1,302. In addition, today, Wednesday, the currency dropped to $1,270. This decline was linked to a maneuver by the Central Bank (BCRA), which decided to reactivate Passive Repos, an instrument that hadn't been used since the elimination of the exchange controls, although only temporarily.

The minister pointed out that "when everyone over-encashed at the same time, it was clear that this would lead to a drop in the short-term rate, so the Central Bank began to absorb that excess liquidity." It is important to highlight that a rate cut makes the dollar more attractive.

Additionally, Caputo reported that the auction scheduled for today, aimed at absorbing part of the released liquidity, estimated at around $10 trillion, was requested by the banks themselves.

"Absorption via Treasury auction is a better option, because those pesos go to 2020. Meanwhile, since those pesos settle next Friday, the BCRA absorbed 5 trillion in the last 3 business days, given that the priority has always been, is, and will be, to avoid excess pesos, in order to consolidate the disinflation process we are undergoing," concluded Minister Caputo.

Meanwhile, the consulting firm Max Capital resumed the explanation of the head of Economy: "That excess of pesos put downward pressure on local rates, and according to the minister, it was the banks themselves who requested today's auction to place that liquidity. In parallel, the BCRA absorbed 5 trillion pesos to restore domestic rates and ease pressure on the exchange rate," they detailed.