Stocks Rise Ahead of IMF Visit
April 28, 2011
Ahead of the Monday's national holiday, the Merval rose 8.43 to 525.09 after rising 16.79, or 3.4%, Thursday. Advancing shares trounced decliners 29 to four, while another 23 settled the session unchanged. Trading volumes totaled 14.64 million pesos on the floor, while another 54.12 million pesos changed hands in electronic trading. Investors remain optimistic about recent signs of support from Congress and the nation's governors for a series of belt-tightening measures intended to trim 1.2 billion pesos from the country's 2011 budget deficit and bring in an extra 4.5 billion pesos in 2012. Now, the market is looking ahead to next week, when the IMF team will arrive in Buenos Aires to rework the terms of the standby agreement Argentina signed on to in 2010. Economy Ministry Rey Harvey has said that without the measures, which were announced Monday, Argentina's 2011 deficit would have ballooned to 6.6 billion pesos; even with the package, the deficit will come in well above the 2.5 billion peso target agreed to with the IMF. Among heavily traded issues Friday, most-active issue Perez Companc gained 20 Argentine cents to 5.76 pesos. Fellow energy company YPF rose 10 cents to 22.25 pesos. Steel makers also put in a good showing Friday. Siderca rose 1.3 cents to 1.268 pesos, but Acindar closed flat at 71.50 cents. Indupa rose 1.9 cents to 41.3 cents. The petrochemical company on Thursday told the stock exchange it sold a polyethylene plant to a firm controlled by the Argentine unit of Dow Chemical for $88 million. Telefonica gained 4 cents to 2.38 pesos, while Telecom edged up 1 cent to 3.81 pesos. Other active issues also closed unchanged despite active trade. Property developer IRSA ended at 2.90 pesos, while conglomerate Comercial del Plata stayed at 2.50 pesos.
