Chile's blue-chip stocks index closed almost unchanged on Friday, weighed by weak economic reports in the United States, high oil prices and end-of-the-month caution.
The IPSA index of 40 leading shares slipped 0.05 percent to 1,520.89 points while the IGPA index, which includes all issues on the Santiago Stock Exchange, inched up 0.10 percent to 7,882.41, according to preliminary closing figures.
"It was a cautious session. Economic data in the United States came in lower than expected and international oil prices continue to rise.
Also, the fact that it's the end of the month motivated some investors to take profits and others to wait," said Rodrigo Sarria, a manager at Intervalores brokerage in Santiago.
Leading telecommunications company Telefonica CTC Chile gained 0.55 percent to 1,825.00 pesos per share.
Market bellwether regional power company Enersis fell 0.22 percent to 76.49 pesos per share. Enersis is weighted as 22 percent of the IPSA. In the United States oil prices surged to a new high, and data on second-quarter gross domestic product growth was not as strong as had been expected.
Over the week the IPSA gained 1.4 percent compared to last Friday's close.
On Thursday it closed at its highest level in almost five months, spurred by the positive outlook for second-quarter corporate earnings.
On the foreign exchange market the peso currency fell 0.78 percent in relation to the US dollar, closing at 643.20/643.70 per greenback, in sympathy with the euro, which also slipped against the dollar, traders said.
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