Chilean stocks slipped in listless trade on Friday, following global markets downward as the first earnings reports came in and the peso edged down against the dollar. The IPSA blue chip index fell 0.43 percent to 2,073.13 points while the all-market IGPA index slipped 0.30 percent to 9,751.64, preliminary closing figures showed.
"We got our first earnings report, but the atmosphere in foreign markets is bad and here there's very low volume," said Roberto Guzman, investment manager with the Euroamerica brokerage. "Volumes this low don't indicate a trend." Daily volume on the Santiago Stock Exchange amounted to a little over 19 billion pesos ($35 million), about a third the volume of an average session.
Telefonica Chile, the nation's dominant telephone company, led blue chip declines as its stock slid 2.31 percent to 889 pesos a share. The company reported on Friday its first-half profit plummeted 68 percent to some $13 million, compared to the same period the prior year. Endesa Spain regional investment subsidiary Enersis, among the few rising blue chip issues, advanced 0.31 percent to 123.25 pesos a share.
Enersis stock rose following news that Merrill Lynch had raised its ADR target price to $15.00 from $13.50. Market players said next week should have more movement, as a number of the largest companies, including firms with ADR shares, are expected to turn in quarterly reports. Chilean companies have until August 14 to report second quarter results.
On the foreign exchange market the peso currency edged down 0.24 percent to 541.30/541.80 per dollar compared to Thursday's close at 540.00/540.50. "Today was pretty quiet. The peso fell due to an increase in dollar purchases, which is normal at the end of the week, and to a lesser extent, following the Brazilian real," a trader said.