Latam stocks mixed; Brazil gains as iron ore prices rebound

RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazilian stocks rose on Monday after a rebound in iron ore prices buoyed the shares of steelmakers, but concerns about the global economy weighed on other key Latin American markets.

The MSCI Latin American stock index fell 0.16 percent to 3,722.87 points.

But Brazil's benchmark Bovespa stock index jumped 0.93 percent to 59,113.69 points. Preferred shares of Vale, the world's largest iron ore producer, were up 2 percent, posting their biggest gain in over three weeks and contributing the most to the Bovespa's rise.

Benchmark iron ore prices rose almost 6 percent, following a holiday week in China, the metal's largest consumer.

Shares of rival miner MMX Mineracao e Metais, controlled by billionaire Eike Batista, rose 4.5 percent.

"Strengthening metals prices are boosting iron and steel shares, which are buoying the Bovespa's gains in contrast with the international scenario," said Luiz Roberto Monteiro, a broker at Renascenca Corretora, a brokerage firm in Sao Paulo.

Diagnostic services provider DASA jumped 6 percent after the purchase of Brazilian health care provider Amil Participacoes by US UnitedHealth, sparked expectations of further consolidation in the sector.

In an effort to revive Latin America's largest economy, President Dilma Rousseff's government has made a priority of reducing Brazil's bank spreads, the difference between what they pay in interest to depositors and what they charge in interest.

Brazilian banks were the worst performers, after Banco do Brasil, the country's largest lender, announced it will slash its service fees by up to a third starting next week. The step could force competitors to do the same.

Shares of Banco do Brasil slid 3.4 percent and shares of Banco Bradesco dipped 0.6 percent.

Elsewhere in Latin America, stocks moved narrowly lower as investors prepared for a weak third-quarter earnings season in the United States and the World Bank cut its growth forecast for China, raising concern about the health of the global economy.

Mexico's benchmark IPC index lost 0.24 percent, and Chile's blue-chip IPSA index fell 0.17 percent.

The World Bank revised downward its growth forecasts for East Asia and the Pacific, warning China's slowdown could worsen and last longer than expected. China is the biggest consumer of Latin America's commodities exports.