|
Bolsas end day mixed
|
 |
March 12, 1999: 4:53 p.m. ET
Brazil stocks have hardest time, dropping 1.3%, while Venezuelan shares rise 1.5%
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Latin American bolsas were about split in terms of gainers and losers Friday.
Brazil led the region's decliners, and Venezuela got out in front of the advancers.
Stocks in Brazil fell prey to profit seeking, among other factors. The benchmark Bovespa index dropped 123 points, or 1.27 percent, at 9,574 but off the day's low.
Brazil's currency finished a calm trading session at 1.915 against the U.S. dollar Friday, 0.3 percent weaker against its close Thursday at 1.91, traders said.
The Brazilian currency, known as the real, came under a little pressure Friday as banks sought refuge in dollars after the Central Bank failed to roll over most of the 4 billion reals in dollar-indexed domestic debt that was coming due Friday, traders said.
In Mexico, profit seekers, a drooping Dow, and intraday losses for market heavyweight Telmex sent stocks' into reverse to toil in negative territory for much of the day, but they managed to stage a small recovery by late afternoon.
The IPC index of 35 leading shares closed up 17.93 points, or 0.38 percent, to end trade at 4,697.73.
Stocks in Venezuela continued their upward momentum Friday, closing higher by 57.5 points, or 1.45 percent, at 4,023.04.
In related news, Venezuela, which is heavily dependent on its oil revenue, was among the OPEC countries that agreed Friday at a meeting in The Hague to cut world oil output by 6 percent, or over 2 million barrels a day (bpd) in a bid to boost oil prices. OPEC countries have still to confirm details of individual production cuts, but key member Saudi Arabia is reportedly not insisting that Venezuela make substantial cuts this time around.
Elsewhere in the region, the day's losers included stocks in Peru, which lost their footing, slipping 0.14 percent to 1,462.70, as benchmark stock Telefonica del Peru tracked falls in the Peruvian firm's American depositary receipts (ADRs), traders said. Argentina's bolsa also fell into the red, with the Merval index dropping 0.69 percent to 407.94 on profit taking, traders said. Among the gainers, shares in Chile benefited from the upward movement of market heavyweight Entel, the country's largest long-distance operator. The IGPA index jumped 1.09 percent to close at 3,976.64. And the major stock index in Colombia inched up 0.17 percent to finish trade at 916.92. 
-- from staff and wire reports
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
