Brazil central bank sells $144 mln in forex swaps

Tue Nov 11, 2008 10:25am EST
SAO PAULO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Brazil's central bank sold about $144 million in dollar swap contracts on Tuesday as part of an ongoing effort to add liquidity to the foreign exchange market and meet demand for the U.S. currency.
The bank sold 2,900 of the 10,000 contracts on offer.
Brazil's currency, the real BRBY, was trading 0.59 percent weaker at 2.2 per dollar shortly after the auction.
The central bank resumed selling dollar swap contracts last month after a two-year hiatus, one of several measures it has taken to add liquidity to the financial system. It has also sold dollars from its international reserves on the spot currency market and dollar repurchase agreements. (Reporting by Jenifer Correa; Writing by Elzio Barreto; Editing by James Dalgleish)