Argentine Markets Drop Sharply After Ruling Party Presidential Candidate Soars
Argentine stocks, bonds and currency traded sharply lower on Monday after the ruling party's presidential candidate came out on top in the first round of voting.
Stocks, bonds, and the currency of Argentina all fell sharply on Monday, after the presidential candidate of the ruling party won the first round of elections, shocking investors and raising concerns over the continuation of the free-spending policy that is driving triple-digit inflation.
Argentina's bonds dropped as much as 10 percent and traded at around 25 cents per dollar, before recovering slightly. The Merval index, the benchmark for Argentine shares, was down nearly 6%. The shares of Grupo Financiero Galaicia, a financial services firm based in Buenos Aires, fell 4% to New York. State-owned energy giant YPF also dropped 8%, and the agriculture company Cresud declined 5%.