Brazil Markets Riled as Fresh Data Adds to Budget Concerns.

Brazilian markets experienced further losses due to concerns about President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's commitment to improving the country's fiscal accounts. Traders sold off the Brazilian real and increased interest rate swaps, indicating expectations of a central bank interest rate hike. The decline in the real was triggered by new data showing a larger-than-expected budget deficit in May, as well as a rebalancing of JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s bond index. Analysts are skeptical about Finance Minister Fernando Haddad's ability to eliminate the primary fiscal deficit, and Lula's criticism of the central bank has also unsettled investors. [Extracted from the article]