ARGENTINA: Merval Rises 2.36% On Investor Optimism Ahead Of Election

(RTTNews) - Merval, the main index of the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange, surged 2.36% Friday, closing at 21,632.98 points, amid optimism ahead of a primary election, with market players betting in a technical tie between the former president Cristina Kirchner and the official candidates. In the week, Merval accumulated a decrease of 0.33%.

On the corporate side, Petrobras Brazil reported that its net income for the second quarter of 2017 was below market expectations, totaling R$ 316 million (around US$ 100 million), down 14.6% compared to the same period of 2016. The company's shares lost 0.39% today.

Meanwhile, BBVA Francés rose 1.63% despite having reported for the second quarter of 2017 a net loss of 282.9 million pesos compared to the same quarter of 2016.

Central Puerto increased 2.89% after reporting a second quarter net profit of 2017 of 748,674 pesos, a 112.21% rise compared to the same period of 2016.

Pampa Energía gained 3.97% by advancing a summary of its balance sheet showing net profits by 51 million pesos during the second quarter of 2017, reversing the losses that had obtained in 2016.

On the indicators side, Argentina's crude steel production for July hit 398,800 tons, a 7.2% increase over June and 12% higher than in the same month of 2016. The steelmaker Siderar rose 2.36%.

The locally traded US dollar closed virtually stable, with a rise of 0.02%, to 17.71 Argentinean pesos, amid successive interventions by the central bank in the foreign exchange market to avoid that the currency rises beyond 18 pesos before the vote.