Colombian stocks rose Thursday for a third straight day, this time fueled by a surge in oil firm Pacific Rubiales Energy, while the peso extended its recent gains against the dollar.
The Colcap index, the benchmark for Colombia’s blue-chip stocks, rose 0.7% in the session to close at 1589.63 points. The index has lost 12.83% so far this year.
The gains Thursday were fueled by a rally in the shares of Pacific Rubiales Energy (PRE.T, PEGFF), a Canada-based oil firm that trades in Toronto and Bogota. The company usually ranks as the most heavily traded stock in the Bogota exchange, where it rose 7.68% to COP41,240.
The company announced that it was planning to also list its shares on the Brazilian stock exchange in an effort to expand its pool of investors. The listing would not represent a new stock sale but instead would allow the company’s shares to also float in Brazil.
The oil firm has already filed the necessary paperwork and is awaiting the approval of Brazilian authorities for the sale.
The Colombian peso, meanwhile, strengthened for a second straight day against the dollar. Earlier in the week, the peso suffered a sharp decline against the greenback as investors were concerned over Europe’s sovereign debt woes and moved into safe haven assets, shredding their positions in emerging markets.
As those fears have eased, the Colombian peso has recovered slightly. On Thursday, the peso closed at COP1,947.80 to the dollar from COP1961.00 a day earlier.
The yield on Colombia’s peso-denominated bond due July 2024, known as TES, closed at 7.679%, after opening the session at 7.683%.
