Brazil's stocks fell on Friday on concerns that troubles in the US credit markets may spread and contaminate the world's largest economy. The Bovespa index of the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange fell 0.71 percent to 54,267.10 points on a hefty turnover of 3.6 billion reais.
The index has risen about 22 percent so far in 2007. On the stock market, state-run Oil Company Petrobras - the most heavily-weighted stock on the index - resisted the downward trend and closed practically flat at 51.31 reais as oil prices rose above $71 a barrel on fears a general strike in Nigeria could disrupt crude supply.
Iron ore miner CVRD, the second heaviest-weighted stock in the Bovespa index, fell 0.61 percent to 73.60 reais. CVRD said late on Thursday that it won a temporary court order to block a decision by the country's antitrust regulator that would have forced the company to sell one of its units.
Sugar and ethanol producer Cosan surged 6.03 percent to 36.05 reais. Archer Daniels Midland Co, the largest US ethanol producer, is considering a purchase of Cosan, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing comments from ADM's senior vice president of strategy. A Cosan spokeswoman declined to comment on the report.
Steelmaker Gerdau fell 1.29 percent to 48.02 reais. The company said on Friday that it paid $71 million for a 45 percent stake in SJK Steel, a joint venture with India's Kalyani Steels Ltd that has a production capacity of 275,000 tonnes a year.
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