|
Latin American shares were mostly mixed on the session, as traders were hesitant to put further money into the markets following recent strength. Brazil's central government raised the reference Selic rate for the ninth-straight time, disappointing some market pundits that were hoping for an end to the tightening cycle.
Meanwhile, Mexico continued to benefit from Alfa's agreement to sell Hylsamex. Elsewhere, Argentine issues ebbed, as the economy showed slowing growth in March.
Brazil's benchmark Bovespa Index negated 69.11 points, or 0.28%, while Mexico's benchmark Bolsa Index jumped 67.59 points, or 0.53%. Argentina's Merval Index slipped 2.09 points, or 0.14%.
Brazilian shares returned some of the gains they recently earned, after the central bank lifted the base Selic interest rate to 19.75% from 19.50%. The move marks the ninth-straight hike in rates. Economists were mixed in their views as to what the central bank would do.
In corporate reports, New York's Southern District Court maintained a temporary restraining order on a deal between Telecom Italia and Banco Opportunity regarding control of Brasil Telecom.
Citigroup, which is also part owner of Brasil Telecom, requested the restraining order. The U.S. court is set to make a decision on the restraining order by June 2.
Within the airline group, Brazilian airline Varig and TAP Air Portugal could reach an investment deal within the next three weeks, according to domestic newspapers. Part of the deal would entail TAP acquiring up to 20% in Varig.
Meanwhile, Mexican shares were more positive on the session, as Alfa's sale of Hylsamex continues to bolster domestic issues. Last night, Alfa said it would sell its 42.5% stake in Hylsamex to Argentina's Techint Group in a deal that values the steel unit at US$ 2.25 billion.
Alfa will receive approximately US$ 958 million for its stake. The offer for 100% of Hylsamex will be extended to holders of Hylsamex class B and class L shares.
Turning to research news, a major investment group reduced its earnings estimates for wireless phone company America Movil due to higher costs related to subscriber growth. Nevertheless, America Movil strengthened on the session.
On the economic front, the National Statistics Institute, or INEGI, said that retail sales advanced 4.4% in March, compared to the year-ago figure. The latest result was also slightly above February's reading.
Argentine shares edged lower, as investors continue to seek further clarity as to when the government will conclude its US$ 103 billion debt swap.
Meanwhile, Indec, the national statistics agency, reported that March's gross domestic product advanced 0.3% from the prior month. Still, the year-over-year rate fell to 7.5% from the prior 8.5% annualized rate in February.
In further deal news, following Techint's announcement of its purchase of Hylsamex, the firm said that two of its units are set to buy Acindar's steel tube assets, which are valued at about US$83.2 million
Thomson Financial Corporate Group
www.thomsonfinancial.com
PRNewswire
 |
Subscribe to this comment's feed
The small, coastal town of Condé is located just a twenty minute's drive from João Pessoa, the capital of Paraíba. The Northeast of Brazil has historically been a place of encounter and mixing between peoples. For millenia groups of indigenous people fished, farmed, migrated and sometimes fought along this large, fertile area. 
The Brazilian diplo-MÁ-cia (bad diplomacy) carries on its accelerated course towards the non-acknowledgment of human rights, although sometimes it takes pleasure in saying that it does precisely the opposite. The visit of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is another example of a diplomatic omission that verges on hypocrisy. 
On July 4, 2006, representatives of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay met in Caracas to sign the protocol for the entrance of Venezuela into the Southern Common Market (Mercosur). After two and a half years, the protocol was approved by the legislative bodies of Argentina and Uruguay, and as of now it may be only days away from being ratified by the continent's economic megalith, Brazil. 
Some sectors of the fight against AIDS have suggested that Thabo Mbeki, the former president of South Africa, committed genocide through his absence from the fight against the illness in his country throughout his two terms. 
One hundred and eleven years after Brazil abolished slavery, the number of workers deprived of their freedom is still huge. They raise cattle, produce charcoal, sugar cane or timber. Some of them, most undocumented Bolivians, work in basements of small apparel factories in São Paulo and other metropolis. 
On November 7, 2009 a few friends and I had an opportunity to take a look inside a Brazilian jail outside the city of Rio de Janeiro. We were able to take some amateur footage of our experience on video (see link below). It's no surprise, of course, that the typical Brazilian jail lacks some of the functionality of those in North America or Europe, but our experience that day was quite shocking. 
Depletion of the Amazon Rainforest is not a new concern facing environmentalists, biologists, ecologists, and a growing number of the Amazonian indigenous peoples. For decades they have feared for the fate of the world's most biologically diverse and species-rich hothouse. 
Geisy Arruda made history this week in Brazil, but for all the wrong reasons. What began as a poorly planned fashion statement has become a worldwide tale. Geisy decided to wear a pink mini-dress to her private college in São Paulo state, and after that, all hell broke loose. 
The push of vigilante groups in Rio de Janeiro's favelas (shantytowns) in the last three years is the most important and alarming information of the just-released study by the Rio de Janeiro University's Violence Research Center (Nupev-Uerj). 
A dispute over drug trafficking territory in Rio de Janeiro has intensified lately, leaving in its wake unprecedented acts of violence, such as the downing of a police helicopter in the northern zone of the city on October 17. Three policemen died and another two were injured. This event has drawn the attention of the international media, who are raising the issue of public security for the 2016 Olympics to be held in Rio.