Who Won the U.S. Presidential Debate?

The South African rand and Chilean peso soared Friday, lifting an index of emerging-market currencies 0.2% after core personal consumption expenditures price index in the US slowed, welcome news for those hoping for rate cuts from the Fed in the coming months. Despite the gains, the index closed the first half down 1% in its worst start of the year since 2022.

Across the developing world, assets have suffered in recent months due to election volatilities. Looming ballots in some of the world’s major economies — in France this weekend, the UK next week and the November presidential contest in the US — are likely to shape investors’ risk perception and drive capital flows in the second half.

The rand rallied on optimism that efforts to create a broad coalition government in South Africa were on track, leading its emerging-market peers higher amid a broad risk-on session. The currency gained as much as 1.8% against the dollar, its biggest gain this year.

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