Argentine stocks close at lowest level in 7 months

The Argentine stock market closed at its lowest level in seven months Thursday after recovering from a steep midday plunge as investors fretted over a new currency rule.

The Buenos Aires Stock Exchange closed down 2.44 percent at 9,288.41 points, after accumulating a 14 percent fall in a week.

The new regulation forces mutual funds to change the way they tally assets held in foreign currencies. The goal of the measure is to halt a slide in the local currency, the peso.

It was imposed Tuesday by the National Stock Market Commission.

The market partially recovered from an eight-percent dive at midday because low prices created opportunities for investors, said analyst Rafael Di Giorno with Proficio Investment.