Colombian stocks fell for a third consecutive session Tuesday, this time tripped up by a new wave of fears over Europe’s sovereign debt situation after Greece called for a referendum on bailout package.
The Colcap index, the benchmark for Colombia’s largest publicly traded firms, fell 1.54% in the day. The index is down 12.42% so far this year.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou had said late Monday that his government would seek a referendum on the country’s latest bailout plan proposed by European leaders, a move that caught investors off guard.
A rejection of the aid package in the referendum could unravel months of tense negotiations on how to avoid a Greek debt default that could hurt other larger European economies.
Pacific Rubiales Energy, a Toronto oil firm that is Colombia’s largest crude independent crude producer, fell 3.46% to COP42,240. Ecopetrol SA, the state-run oil firm, declined 0.63% to COP3,975.
The Colombian peso, meanwhile, weakened against the greenback as investors sought out the relative safety of the dollar. The peso closed at COP1,891.95 from COP1,866.95 a day earlier.
The yield on Colombia’s peso-denominated bond due July 2024 closed at 7.445%, after opening the session at 7.507%.