Peru. Pedro Castillo appointed his Minister of Economy amid market collapse and currency fall

Peruvian President Pedro Castillo on Friday completed his cabinet and appointed his Economy and Justice ministers two close advisers, with the intention of defusing a political tension that began with the appointment of a controversial prime minister and other inexperienced secretaries.

In a ceremony held this Friday evening, the Peruvian president took an oath to Pedro Francké, as the new Minister of the Economy, and Annibal torres, as holder of the Justice portfolio.

Francke’s name has been confirmed amid the economic uncertainty affecting the domestic market and affecting the rise of the dollar, which has reached an all-time high.

As soon as he took office, the economist swore with a strong political message by declaring that he accepted the post “for sustained progress towards well-being, with equal opportunities, regardless of gender, ethnic identity or sexual orientation, for democracy and national consensus. ”

The truth is that the Castillo cabinet assembly caused great turmoil in the country. Especially when he appointed prime minister Guido Bellido, an unknown lawmaker, 42, who became the epicenter of the controversy after discovering he had repeated phrases homophobic and macho on their social networks in recent years.

Francke, a 61-year-old economics professor who has advised Castillo since May, was the candidate for the job. He even met, with the current president, investors and businessmen to alleviate the mistrust generated in the market by the left-wing president.

However, the economic reality was tense as Francke did not take the oath with 16 other ministers on Thursday evening. The reasons for the postponement were not disclosed, although there was an hour-long meeting in the early hours of Friday with Castillo.

The new officials avoided making statements and the press did not have access to the Grand National Theater where the swearing-in ceremony was being held, which was broadcast on public television.

Francke, an economist who worked at the World Bank, assured that the government will respect private property, people’s savings and continue to maintain the autonomy of the Central Reserve Bank “to ensure that investments in Peru do not soar “.

Likewise, the new Minister of the Economy considered that income taxes could be increased mining companies because of high copper prices, which exceed $ 10,000 per tonne. Peru is the world’s second largest exporter of copper and sixth of gold.

Political tension reached the financial market, where the dollar’s exchange rate rose more than 3%, topping four Peruvian soles to the dollar, while the general index of the local stock exchange collapsed by 5.8. %. The rising dollar translates into higher prices for various staple foods on a daily basis.

Meanwhile, the lawyer Annibal torresAnother advisor to Castillo, who has been appointed justice minister, was also not among the cabinet members who were sworn in on Thursday.

The lawyer of 78 years old would have expressed a first disagreement on the appointment of the controversial Bellido, who is the subject of an investigation by the public prosecutor’s office for “apologia for terrorism”, since he would have defended the terrorist group Sendero Luminoso by qualifying them as “Peruvians who took by mistake a path ”and paying tribute to a member of this group who died in 1982.

GRB