Argentine stocks rose on Friday, buoyed by energy-related shares as crude oil prices surged, traders said. The benchmark MerVal index gained 0.82 percent to 1,066.51 in a volatile session. The MerVal fell nearly 3 percent over the course of the week.
On the broad market, volume was a paltry $8.3 million. Of active issues, 21 advanced, 20 declined and 10 were unchanged. Shares of index heavyweight Tenaris, which makes steel tubes for the energy industry, rose 1.7 percent to 35.60 pesos. Tenaris accounts for more than one-third of the MerVal's weighting and often moves along with US crude futures, which settled more than 6 percent higher on Friday.
Argentine government bonds traded over the counter in Buenos Aires rose 0.9 percent on average, led by the dollar-denominated Boden 2014, which rebounded by 3.5 percent to an ask price of 11.80. A government source told reporters on Friday that local banks, insurance companies and other institutions could tender some $2.8 billion in so-called guaranteed loans in exchange for new, longer-dated bonds - reducing the government's 2009 debt payments by $860 million.