PORTO, Portugal, March 1 (Reuters) - The Mexican peso is undervalued and the fundamentals of the economy are healthy, Mexican Finance Minister Agustin Carstens said on Sunday.
Financial markets have overreacted during the financial crisis, causing the peso to fall too much, he said.
'I think yes, it is undervalued; the economic fundamentals are healthy,' Carstens told reporters during a meeting of Ibero-American financial officials.
The peso, which hit an all-time low last week, has lost a third of its value against the dollar since August.It was trading around 15.25 per dollar late on Friday.
Asked when the economy was likely to hit its low point, Carstens said it would depend largely on the United States.
Economists expect Mexico's economy to contract just over 1 percent in 2009.
(Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; Paul Day; writing by Axel Bugge; Editing by Ted Kerr) Keywords: MEXICO PESO/ (paul.e.day@thomsonreuters.com; Tel + 34 91 585 83 08; Reuters Messaging: paul.e.day.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Financial markets have overreacted during the financial crisis, causing the peso to fall too much, he said.
'I think yes, it is undervalued; the economic fundamentals are healthy,' Carstens told reporters during a meeting of Ibero-American financial officials.
The peso, which hit an all-time low last week, has lost a third of its value against the dollar since August.It was trading around 15.25 per dollar late on Friday.
Asked when the economy was likely to hit its low point, Carstens said it would depend largely on the United States.
Economists expect Mexico's economy to contract just over 1 percent in 2009.
(Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; Paul Day; writing by Axel Bugge; Editing by Ted Kerr) Keywords: MEXICO PESO/ (paul.e.day@thomsonreuters.com; Tel + 34 91 585 83 08; Reuters Messaging: paul.e.day.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.