Mexican president says considering options for central banker Esquivel’s future

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Monday that he was considering “alternatives” for the country’s central bank deputy governor Gerardo Esquivel, who lost a bid to become the next president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

The president said various posts were under consideration for Esquivel, declining to say if the central banker, whose term is up in December, would have his current role renewed.

“We don’t know … we are going to explore other possibilities,” he said when probed by journalists about Esquivel’s future at his daily news conference.

“There are several options, alternatives,” he added.

Lopez Obrador, who has been critical of the central bank’s consecutive interest rate hikes in recent months, praised Esquivel for his dedication as a public servant.

Esquivel, 56, is regarded as perhaps the most dovish member of the board of the Bank of Mexico (Banxico).

He was among the five nominated candidates put up to head the IDB, the largest development bank in Latin America, which Brazil’s candidate Ilan Goldfajn ultimately won on Sunday.

(Reporting by Mexico City newsroom)