Peru May Make Record Dollar Purchases on Inflows

Peru’s central bank may buy a record amount of dollars in the foreign-exchange market this year in a bid to prevent an “avalanche” of investment from spurring gains in the sol, according to Banco de Credito, the country’s biggest bank.

Purchases may surpass the $10.3 billion the central bank bought in 2007, after a surge in short-term investment drove the sol to a 23-month high this month, said Alonso Segura, head of research at Banco de Credito, in an interview in Lima yesterday. The bank has bought $4.8 billion this year, including $1.6 billion this month.