19.02.201819:48:00UTC+00ARGENTINA: Merval Rises 1.90% Without Wall Street Guidance

Merval, the main index of the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange, rose 1.90% to 33,298.28 points Monday, boosted by corporate results in a day in which the market traded without the guidance of Wall Street due to a holiday in the United States.

Analysts from Puente said that the Merval had recovered half of the correction that began on January 29 in the international markets, when Argentinean stocks lost 14% at the lowest point.

PGR (2.31%) agreed on Monday to up to US$ 120 million of capital expenditures that will be directed to shale gas and oil projects in Vaca Muerta, in the Neuqu?n Basin, during 2018.

Meanwhile, Ternium Siderar (-2.76%) reported to the National Securities Commission (CNV) the advance of its consolidated financial results for 2017, when it posted a net result 9,164,520 million pesos.

Also Monday, bank workers began a 48-hour strike after bankers presented a wage increase proposal way below inflation. Banco Franc?s' shares lost 3.31%, while Banco Galicia fell 0.78%.

Holcim (+5.20%) reported that the board approved the acquisition of 160,000 shares of Geocycle, representing 2% of the company's capital.

The locally traded U.S. Dollar rose 1.09%, closing at 19.90 Argentinean pesos, amid lower volume due to the U.S. holiday. The bank workers strike launched in Argentina also influenced, said an analyst at ABC Mercado de Cambios.