Latin American equities rose sharply on Friday after the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak eased fears of a deeper crisis in the Middle East and lifted stocks worldwide. The MSCI Latin American stocks index rose 1.93 percent, enough to help the gauge post a slight 0.19 percent gain for the week after three straight weekly losses.
Hosni Mubarak handed over power to the army, lessening concerns the crisis could cause a spike in oil prices and hurt global growth. But, he cautioned, that markets could still remain jittery about political risks in the region. "There could still be volatility in the short-term," he said.
Brazil's Bovespa index rose 1.82 percent, chalking up a 0.75 percent gain for the week. Investors - especially those abroad - have dumped Latin American stocks in recent weeks on fears rising consumer prices around the world would force central banks to hike interest rates more aggressively. Higher borrowing costs could crimp company profits, slow growth and draw more investors into bonds. Shares of homebuilders climbed in Sao Paulo, with Gafisa rising 5.56 percent, Rossi Residencial 5 percent and Cyrela 6.84 percent.
Retailer Lojas Renner climbed 2.8 percent, and cosmetics company Natura added 3.34 percent. Mexico's IPC index rose 0.98 percent, still leaving it down 1.2 percent during the week. Copper miner Grupo Mexico rose 2.92 percent while retailer Wal-Mart de Mexico rose 0.99 percent. Chile's IPSA index advanced 2.56 percent in its biggest gain since mid-October. Industrial conglomerate Copec gained 4.19 percent. Retailers Cencosud rose 6.02 percent and Falabella adde 1.72 percent.
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