Latin American stocks seesawed widely on Friday as equities briefly rebounded from a string of recent losses before long-term worries about global growth triggered another sell-off. The MSCI Latin America stock index dropped 3.35 percent near mid-day, having risen as much as 2.58 percent earlier in the session.
The morning's losses took the index to a drop of 12 percent for the week, its worst performance since December 2008. The MSCI touched a more than one-year low with Friday's fall. Better-than-expected US jobs data gave investors some relief early in the session. But that confidence didn't last, as investors continued to worry about a potential downgrade of US sovereign debt and a persistent eurozone fiscal crisis.
Brazil's benchmark Bovespa stock index swung widely, up and then down 2 percent within half an hour. The index pared was down 2.46 percent near mid-day at 51,511.60, a more than two-year low. Heavyweight commodities companies extended losses, with state-controlled energy company Petrobras retreating 3.9 percent and rival OGX plummeting 4.8 percent.
Mining giant Vale also declined, with common stock down 4.8 percent and preferred shares off 4.6 percent. Mexico's IPC index dropped 1.55 percent to 32,805.38 for a loss of about 10 percent this week, the IPC's worst drop since October 2008, during the global financial crisis. Shares of heavyweight America Movil, one of the world's biggest telecommunications companies, lost 1.07 percent. Chile's IPSA moved down 2.6 percent on the day for a loss of about 9 percent this week.