THE SECRETARIAT OF FINANCE ANNOUNCED THAT IN YESTERDAY’S AUCTION IT ACHIEVED A 93.3% ROLLOVER of maturities totaling $7.2 trillion. In this round, where no fixed-rate instruments were offered, CER bonds accounted for nearly 98% of the total peso allocation, with rates validated slightly above the secondary market curve. Meanwhile, dollar-linked bonds saw limited demand: ARS 0.15 trillion of the TZV27 was placed, while the TZV28 was left vacant. The main development was the issuance of the new Bonar 2027 (AO27), under which USD 150 M was placed (100% of the amount offered) at a yield of 5.89% IRR, implying a clearing price of $100.45 (per 100 par value), while bids totaled USD 868 M. A second round of the Bonar will take place today at yesterday’s clearing price for up to USD 100 M.
PESO-DENOMINATED DEBT POSTED A MIXED PERFORMANCE, WITH DOLLAR-LINKED BONDS STANDING OUT, RISING 0.8% IN LINE WITH THE INCREASE IN EXCHANGE RATES, in a session where the market appeared to anticipate an improvement in liquidity conditions following yesterday’s auction. This was reflected in overnight rates: the Repo rate averaged 23.8% NAR and the one-day repo (caución) stood at 26% NAR. However, the rest of the instruments traded with greater weakness, as the fixed-rate curve, dual bonds and CER bonds posted losses of 0 2.0%.
SOVEREIGN DOLLAR BONDS POSTED MARGINAL GAINS ON AVERAGE, although the Bonares curve declined 0.1%, while ARGENT bonds rose by the same magnitude, driven by the long end (+0.4%). As a result, country risk continues to trade sideways around the 500 bps level and closed at 545 bps.
THE OFFICIAL EXCHANGE RATE RESUMED ITS UPWARD TREND, RISING 0.8% TO CLOSE AT ARS 1,388.58, STANDING 15.5% BELOW THE UPPER LIMIT OF THE EXCHANGE RATE BAND. Financial dollars followed with more pronounced gains of 2.1% in both the MEP and the CCL, closing at ARS 1,428.6 and ARS 1,473, respectively, while the CCL-MEP spread remained around 3.1%. Meanwhile, the Central Bank (BCRA) continued purchasing foreign currency in the official market, albeit at a slower pace, acquiring USD 85 M during the session. This brought net purchases to USD 1,483 M in February and USD 2,641 million so far this year. In this context, gross international reserves increased by USD 28 million to close at USD 46,662 M.
THE MERVAL, ONCE AGAIN MOVING AGAINST GLOBAL AND LATAM MARKETS, FELL 0.4% IN PESOS AND 2.4% IN CCL DOLLAR TERMS, CLOSING AT USD 1,902. The decline was driven by the industrial sector, while in dollar terms the biggest losers were Mirgor, Transener, and VALO, posting losses between 4.6% and 7.3%. Meanwhile, Aluar and Telecom recorded modest gains of 1.0%. Argentine shares listed in New York declined 0.9%, showing a relatively better performance than the local market. Notably, MELI dropped 8.2% after reporting margin compression despite strong revenue growth. In contrast, Globant and Bioceres advanced 4.1% and 3.5%, respectively.
