Financial News

Equities ended lower during yesterday's trading session at the Malta Stock Exchange and it could have been worse were it not for last-minute buying activity in Maltacom and Malta International Airport shares. Bonds traded rather smoothly with most yields remaining stable.

Bank of Valletta and HSBC Bank Malta shares continued to move in tandem, both declining by the same nominal amount and very similar percentages. Contrary to BoV shares which traded within a 1c5 range to close at Lm4.86, all three deals in HSBC Bank Malta were struck at the Lm4.85c level. Trading in Malta International Airport shares got off to a negative start, declining 3c5 to Lm1.32 as sellers outnumbered buyers. Activity then dwindled to a standstill until the final minutes of the session, when demand came in from nowhere and scooped up shares to the Lm1.35 level.

Maltacom shares performed in a similar fashion, initially dropping to the Lm1.36c level only to climb back to close the day unchanged at Lm1.39. Trading consisted of a few shares shy of 4,000 which were struck across four transactions.

Trading in Middlesea Insurance and Lombard Bank shares did not affect their previous closing levels of Lm3.30 and Lm5.10 respectively.

European stocks rise led by tech gains

Wall Street futures fell yesterday after a monthly employment report came in well below expectations. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell eight points to 10,553.50. Contracts on the S&P 500 fell 1.3 points to 1,204.00, and Nasdaq 100 futures slipped one point to 1,570.50.

Following an overnight fall in oil prices, the FTSE maintained its hold above the 5,000 level by the end of the morning session although trading remained light ahead of vital US employment data due to be released later in the day. The FTSE 100 fell 0.1 per cent to 5,000.2 while the mid-cap FTSE 250 added to its early gains to move 0.4 per cent higher to 7,195.8 by mid-morning.

European stocks were higher yesterday after the oil prices slipped overnight, and with technology stocks in focus after a solid performance on the US Nasdaq Composite thanks to an upbeat outlook from chipmaker Intel. But some caution was being seen ahead of the non-farm payrolls report on the US labour market later in the session. By midday, the pan-European FTSE Eurofirst 300 held around its three-year high, at 1,120.28. Frankfurt's Xetra Dax was 0.1 per cent higher at 4,538.67.

Tokyo shares were mixed and left the Nikkei average mostly unchanged, as gains by shipping companies and the internet sector were offset by losses among consumer electronic groups and carmakers. The Nikkei 225 rose 0.18 per cent to close at 11,300.05, while the broader Topix average fell 0.10 per cent to 1,147.72.