BUENOS AIRES –Argentina’s Merval stock index was largely unchanged Monday as investors sat on the sidelines on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in the U.S.
The index rose 0.3% to 2,754.57 points in volume totaling ARS15.5 million ($3.6 million).
The aluminum producer Aluar Aluminio Argentino SAIC (ALUA.BA, AAARF) led the gains by rising 2.8% to ARS2.97.
The financial conglomerate Grupo Financiero Galicia SA (GGAL.BA, GGAL) rose about 1% to ARS3.5. It was the most traded stock of the day in terms of volume at around ARS1.1 million.
The oil and gas company YPF SA (YPFD.BA, YPF) led the declines by falling 3.9% to ARS164.50.
Earlier Monday the government said it is investigating accusations that five oil companies acted as a cartel and abused their dominant positions in the wholesale diesel market to inflate prices for the transportation industry.
Transportation Secretary Juan Pablo Schiavi said the investigation is being handled by antitrust agency CNDC following accusations by trade groups representing bus and trucking companies.
The five companies named in the probe are Spain’s Repsol YPF SA (REPYY, REP.MC), Shell Argentina SA, Petrobras Argentina SA (PZE, PESA.BA), Esso Argentina SA and Oil Combustible SA.
Schiavi said Repsol YPF, through it local subsidiary YPF SA (YPF, YPFD.BA), supplies 65% of the diesel used by public transportation firms, followed by Shell with 20% and Esso with 9%.
«We associate the decline at YPF with the government’s announcement,» said Mayoral brokerage trader Ruben Pascuali.
Shares of Petrobras Argentina fell 2.8% to ARS6.51.
The price of the benchmark peso-denominated 2033 was unchanged at ARS130, yielding 12.7%.
The peso closed at ARS4.3165 to the U.S. dollar on the MAE local foreign-exchange wholesale market versus ARS4.3115 in the previous session.
Last year the peso weakened 7.6% against the dollar.
-By Taos Turner, Dow Jones Newswires; 5411-4103-6728; taos.turner@dowjones.com
Source: Dow Jones