Financial News
Index higher on banks
The MSE Index gained 1.2 per cent during yesterday's trading session as investors purchased shares in the heavyweight banking sector.
Bank of Valletta was the day's best performing equity, closing higher by 3.3 per cent, at Lm4.70. The equity immediately commenced trading higher at Lm4.56 and kept advancing throughout the session. The final push came towards the end of the session when supply at the Lm4.70 level was completely cleared off.
HSBC Bank Malta's price adjusted to the three-for-one bonus issue, closing at the Lm2.80c level. This equates to a 1.4 per cent gain over the previous session's close. The bonus shares will be available for trading as from next Wednesday. The day's activity consisted in 36,500 shares which were exchanged across 59 trades.
FIMBank shares bucked the trend as a partially filled order was completed towards the end of the session forcing a 3.8 per cent drop in price to the $2.02 level.
Elsewhere, 211 shares of Lombard Bank were exchanged across two transactions without affecting their previous closing price of Lm11.
Initial buying activity in Maltacom, helped the price open 2c higher at the Lm1.97 level, but quickly succumbed to stronger selling pressure. As a result the equity closed the session in negative territory, dropping 1.5 per cent to end the day at Lm1.92.
Trading in Middlesea Insurance did not affect its previous closing level of Lm5.15, while, similarly, Datatrak Holdings, which is due to report its full year earnings next week, also traded unchanged at 30c.
European stocks fall on high oil prices
European stocks fell yesterday following the previous session's steep losses, as oil prices remained above $69 a barrel, while trade began to thin as the Easter holiday approached. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.5 per cent to 1,360.46, while Frankfurt's Xetra Dax fell 0.4 per cent to 5,883.49. In Paris, the CAC 40 was 0.9 per cent lower at 5,069.21 and London's FTSE 100 slid 0.6 per cent to 5,982.3.
Shares surged yesterday as the wider market lost ground due to weakness in mining stocks. LSE shares jumped 14.5 per cent to £11.89 - an all-time high - on the prospect of a fresh takeover battle as Nasdaq of the US confirmed it had bought a 14.99 per cent stake in the UK exchange.
Japanese stocks continued falling for the third straight day yesterday, hit by overnight weakness in US shares and fears that recent share rises may not be sustainable. The Nikkei 225 stock average closed down 1.5 per cent to 17,162.55. The Topix fell 1.5 per cent to 1,742.89.
The electrical machinery sector fell two per cent, hit by fears about the US economy - a key market for Japanese exports. Kyocera, the high-tech manufacturer, fell 4.1 per cent to Y10,480.
Wall Street opened higher yesterday as a spate of generally positive corporate news offered investors a welcome distraction from soaring commodities prices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3 per cent at 11,122.36, while the broader S&P 500 gained 0.2 per cent to 1,288.64 and the Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.1 per cent to 2,311.75.