Financial News
Demand for Maltacom shares
Selected buying activity continued to dominate the overall trend when investors returned to the Malta Stock Exchange, following the weekend recess. Long dated government bonds had a particularly busy day with yields squeezing further as prices moved higher.
Maltacom shares were the day's top gainers as investors took into account the fact that the equity had not participated in the recent market rally. During yesterday's session, a total of 4,573 shares changed hands across 6 transactions with the price moving up 5c or 3.7 per cent to close at Lm1.38c.
Bullish investors remained firmly in control of HSBC Bank Malta with the price notching a further 0.6 per cent higher, to make it five consecutive sessions of gains and new record highs. Activity was muted when compared to Friday's session with just 2,200 shares being exchanged across six transactions, with the price closing at the Lm5.30c level.
Bank of Valletta shares were the day's only decliners. During yesterday's session, a total of 6,508 shares were struck across 14 transactions, with the price dropping momentarily to touch the Lm4.99c level before last minute buying activity, hidden from the bid side, lessened the decline by a penny, for it to close at Lm5.
Six hundred shares of Datatrak Holdings were swapped among two investors on the Alternative Companies List without affecting the previous closing level of Lm0.17c5.
Lower oil helps FTSE push higher
Europe's bourses hit new three-year highs encouraged by a strong close on Wall Street on Friday, the market's full recovery from the lows of Thursday and a weaker oil price. In New York on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had climbed 1.4 per cent to 10,449.1 and the broader S&P 500 was up 1.2 per cent at 1,211.9. The technology heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.8 per cent, taking it to 2,112.9.
London's main equities market moved higher by the end of morning trade, helped by a drop in crude oil prices to below $60 a barrel. Investors were also cheered by a strong performance on Wall Street on Friday due to positive data on employment and consumer confidence.
The FTSE Eurofirst 300 rose 0.4 per cent to 1,155.99 with the Xetra Dax in Frankfurt up one per cent to 4,645.92, having hit a three-year high of 4,650.89 earlier in the session. The CAC-40 in Paris was 0.6 per cent better at 4,323.82 having also hit a three-year peak of 4,332.99 earlier. The FTSE 100 was up 0.2 per cent to 5,242.4, slightly below its three-year intra-day peak set on Friday.
Tokyo shares closed at a 13-week high yesterday, buoyed by investor optimism following strong US payroll data released on Friday. The benchmark Nikkei 225 average closed up 0.9 per cent to 11,674.79 while the broader Topix index was 0.6 per cent higher at 1,185.02.