Companies Look to Once-Dead Caracas Stock Market as Volumes Soar

A raft of Venezuelan companies are looking to sell shares on the local stock exchange as the market wakes up after more than a decade of near paralysis under the socialist rule of former president Nicolas Maduro.

Around 10 local companies are expected to make initial or secondary share offerings in the local market in the next four months as trading volumes soar, said Jose Grasso Vecchio, president of the Caracas Stock Exchange. The exchange itself is offering 2.6 million new shares in an offer that launched last week.