South American equitiy markets decline

Equity markets in Argentina lost ground on Tuesday, after a national holiday closed the markets on Monday, on negative results in Brazil and the United States.

Another factor in the losses was the pending expiration of futures options. The MerVal index in Buenos Aires fell 0.56 percent to 1,470.98 at the close of trade. The nation’s currency held steady, however, at 2.875 pesos to the US dollar.

The Brazilian markets had declined on caution ahead of a new round of hearings in the government’s pay-for-votes scandal, while the New York exchanges fell on the news that Wal-Mart had said consumer spending was being hurt by soaring oil prices. In Sao Paulo, the Bovespa index was down 1.08 percent.

In New York, both the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq composite were down more than 1 percent. Among the companies declining in Buenos Aires were bankers Grupo Financiera Galicia, which fell 1.27 percent to 2.33 pesos and steel company Tenaris, losing 2.56 percent to 28.55 pesos.

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