* Brazil approves fiscal rules * South Africa says BRICS nations have agreed expansion mechanisms * Wagner boss Prigozhin listed in Russian plane crash * Latam FX up 1.2%, stocks rise 3% (Updated at 2020 GMT) By Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Ankika Biswas Aug 23 (Reuters) - Brazil's real touched a two-week high against a soft dollar on Wednesday following the approval of fiscal rules aimed at preventing public debt spike, while debt-laden Argentina secured a $7.5 billion disbursement from the International Monetary Fund. The IMF's executive board approved the fifth and sixth reviews of its $44 billion program with Argentina, allowing for the disbursement of $7.5 billion the cash-strapped economy desperately needs. Argentina's peso last week hit a record low of 785-per-dollar in parallel exchanges, and was last at 725-per-dollar, while the S&P Merval index climbed 3%. Authorities devalued the official currency by 18% and pegged it at 350 per dollar after a surprise primary election victory by libertarian Javier Milei sparked a currency and bonds rout. "In the coming months, depreciation pressures for the Argentinian peso will mount and force the government to further devalue the currency," BCA Research analysts wrote in a note. "While the ARS has cheapened materially in the past week, its real effective exchange rate has not yet reached very attractive valuations." Economy Minister Sergio Massa said that a sharp peso devaluation earlier this month would push up August inflation. Meanwhile, leading the gains in Latam FX market was the Brazilian real, up 1.72%, steering a 1.2% gain in the MSCI regional currencies index. Brazil's lower house on Tuesday approved a new fiscal framework proposed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva that advocates deem crucial for preventing an escalation in public debt. It now only needs to be formally sanctioned by the president. "On a fiscal framework in Brazil, we are looking at a better assessment from investors," said Eduardo Moutinho, market analyst at Ebury. "There was a lot of risk premium priced in the beginning of the year when no one knew where the fiscal framework was going to go in this mandate from Lula, now they are saying that this risk is not that significant." Meanwhile, leaders of the BRICS bloc agreed mechanisms for considering new members, South Africa said, paving the way for dozens of interested nations to join the group which has pledged to champion the "Global South". Top producers Chile's peso and Peru's sol gained 1.5% and 0.3%, respectively, tracking higher copper prices. Mexico's peso gained 0.6% against the greenback, while Colombia's peso rose 1%. The MSCI Latam stocks gauge gained nearly 3%, boosted by Brazilian and Argentine equities. Elsewhere, Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was listed as a passenger on a private jet which crashed on Wednesday evening north of Moscow with no survivors, Russian authorities said, raising fears among his allies that he had been killed. Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 2020 GMT: Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 972.02 0.55 MSCI LatAm The 2.66 Brazil Bovespa 118000.91 1.59 Mexico IPC 53698.95 1.07 Chile IPSA 6221.94 1.01 Argentina MerVal 611648.45 2.98 Colombia COLCAP 1100.34 -1.38 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 4.8532 1.72 Mexico peso 16.8010 0.60 Chile peso 856.2 1.48 Colombia peso 4070.5 0.96 Peru sol 3.6993 0.32 Argentina peso (interbank) 349.9500 0.01 Argentina peso (parallel) 725 0.28 (Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Ankika Biswas in Bengaluru Editing by Marguerita Choy and Alistair Bell)
