Mexico central bank chief resigns

Mexican Central Bank Governor Agustin Carstens will resign on July 1, 2017, leaving his post amid rising doubt about the direction of the national economy following the election of Donald Trump as US president.

Trump had threatened to rip up a free trade deal with Mexico during his campaign; and any such move could hit Mexico's economy, which sends around 80 percent of its exports to the United States.

Carstens for his part had compared Trump with "a maximum category five hurricane because of his tough stance toward the Latin American nation.

Currency downslide

Carstens, a former Mexican finance minister, has been at the helm of the central bank since 2010 and is highly respected by international investors.

After stepping down, he looks set to take the top job at the Bank for International Settlements in October next year.

Carstens has fought an uphill battle to slow the peso's recent fall, with the currency battered by fears surrounding the Trump presidency.

Most members of the central bank's board were concerned that uncertainty about new economic policies under Trump could further hammer the peso, according to minutes from the lender's latest meeting.

hg/jd (Reuters, AFP)