Colombian bond yields rose on Monday and the peso weakened to its lowest level since Sept. 2 after government gross domestic product data showed an economy still struggling to recover from the global economic downturn.
Colombia’s third-quarter GDP fell 0.2% on a year-on-year basis, slightly below market expectations, according to Colombia’s national statistics department, or DANE. The median estimate in a Dow Jones Newswires survey of 11 economic analysts was for annual growth of 0.2%. Forecasts ranged from a contraction of 0.3% to an expansion of 0.6%.
The peso weakened to COP2,037.60 against the dollar on the news, from COP2,029 on Friday.
“Some market players were taken by surprise and some positions were liquidated, especially in the fixed income markets,” said Arnoldo Casas, a market analyst with local brokerage Profesionales de Bolsa. “At the same time, the rise of the dollar combined with these figures caused the peso to fall.”
The yield on Colombia’s benchmark peso-denominated bond maturing in 2020 rose to 8.420%, from 8.272% at Friday’s close.
Colombia’s benchmark IGBC stock index fell 0.16% to 11,576.06 points. The Colcap index, which includes the largest companies by market capitalization, was almost unchanged at 1,369.56 points.
“We’ve had four consecutive weeks of rises and these small pauses are normal for the market,” said Nicolas Pardo, an analyst with local brokerage Valores Bancolombia.
Shares in Canadian-based oil company Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp. will begin trading Tuesday, said the stock exchange’s communications director, Jaime Sarmiento.
Pacific Rubiales is the first foreign company to be listed on Colombia’s stock market. (Dow Jones)