The MSE Index closed modestly higher during the opening session of the week at the Malta Stock Exchange as low trading volumes continued to characterise the market. As a result the index closed just 0.235 per cent higher to close the day at 5,081.218 points.
HSBC Bank Malta plc shares attracted the highest value of business for the day with 18,131 shares carrying a market capitalisation of Lm38,250. However this trading activity did not have any effect on the price of the share which remained unchanged at the Lm2.11 level.
Bank of Valletta plc shares ended the day 1c higher to close the session at Lm3.68. The bulk of the trading was executed at Lm3.67 level, however towards the last five minutes of the session 1,591 shares were exchanged at today's closing price. At the end of the session 1,973 shares were best bid at Lm3.67 against supply of 2,409 shares offered at Lm2.11.
Maltacom plc shares regained some lost ground as the share price moved up 2c or 1.38 per cent to close the day at Lm1.47. A total of 6,170 shares were traded today between the Lm1.45 and Lm1.47 range.
Also on a positive note, Simonds Farsons Cisk shares gained 2c or 2.5 per cent to close the session at 82c. In total 11,540 shares were exchanged during the session across five transactions. On the other hand Malta International Airport shares lost a mere 0c2 to close the session at Lm1.398. At the end of the session there was unsatisfied supply of 3,693 shares at yesterday's closing price.
Six-year highs reached by European stocks
Yesterday European equities hit fresh six-year highs as firming commodity prices helped lift oil stocks, miners and industrial metals groups, while strong sales helped Swiss watchmaker Swatch. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.4 per cent, Frankfurt's Xetra Dax added 0.2 per cent to 6,758.26, the CAC 40 in Paris gained 0.4 per cent to 5,639.17.
In London the FTSE gained as takeover speculation continued to boost InterContinental Hotels Group. By midday, the FTSE 100 was up 0.2 per cent, as did the FTSE 250.
Gains in banking and technology stocks countered corporate scandal, allowing the Nikkei 225 to advance to a nine-month closing high. The benchmark stock average rose 0.7 per cent 17,424.18. The broader Topix climbed 0.9 per cent to 1,730.33.
US stock-index futures rose. Pfizer Inc., the world's biggest drug-maker, climbed after reporting fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates. An advance in the previous session on January 19, spurred by a surge in consumer confidence, wasn't enough to keep the Nasdaq from posting its first weekly decline of the year last week. Investors will today look to a report from the conference board, a New York-based private research group, for evidence that growth in the world's largest economy won't slow any further.
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