Bank of Mexico says financial system is solid, warns of geopolitical and climate risks

BY Reuters | ECONOMIC | 03:20 PM EDT

MEXICO CITY, June 10 (Reuters) - Mexico's financial system remains resilient and solid with the capacity to confront adverse scenarios, the central bank said on Wednesday, while highlighting geopolitical conflicts as issues to closely monitor.

It also noted that risks in the system marginally increased since the prior stability report published in December. The Bank of Mexico, known as Banxico, said the banking system has strong capital and liquidity levels and would be able to withstand shocks under stress scenarios. Looking at internal financial risks, it flagged deterioration in the country's economic growth outlook, followed by higher-than-expected inflation and a downgrade in the sovereign credit rating. On the non-financial side, it described geopolitical conflict, cyber issues and climate events as potential risks. Total financing of the non-financial sector of Mexico's economy reached 103.9% of GDP in the first quarter, with more than half concentrated in the public sector, the report showed. (Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon, Editing by I?igo Alexander)

In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.

Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.

Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.

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