Financial news

Local equities closed the week on a positive note as low volume buying activity taking helped prices improve to higher levels. The fixed interest sector of the market was particularly active with plenty of institutional activity.

International Hotel Investments was the top gainer for the second consecutive session, however activity consisted of a single transaction whereby 2,305 shares were swapped at the €1.04 level, which represents a 0.97 per cent premium to Thursday's closing level.

Soft buying activity returned to Bank of Valletta, helping the equity gain nine-tenths of a cent to close the week at the Lm3.609 level. A total of 5,935 shares were exchanged across nine transactions with the price moving slightly higher throughout the session.

Elsewhere, HSBC Bank Malta climbed higher by the slimmest of margins on a single transaction which saw a buyer agreeing to take up 2,527 shares at the Lm1.901 level. The equity seems poised to gain further ground during the next trading session with the outstanding bids in the market showing investor interest to purchase shares up to the Lm1.903 level, while the best supply is for 10,000 shares at Lm1.95.

In the fixed interest sector of the market, activity was spread across two corporate bonds and 13 government stocks. Local government yields increased across the whole curve, in line with the euro government yields after the European Central Bank's meeting on Thursday. Hawkish comments by the ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet signalled that further rate hikes in the eurozone are to be expected. Volume activity was relatively high with an aggregate total of 6,423,800 nominal exchanging hands.

The MSE Index closed the day 0.18 per cent higher at 4,855 points.

European equities higher

Yesterday, carmakers were in focus as European equity markets put in a steady performance, with Peugeot up on solid first half sales and Fiat benefitting from an upgrade. By late morning, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.3 per cent, Frankfurt's Xetra Dax gained 0.2 per cent, the CAC 40 in Paris rose 0.4 per cent and London's FTSE 100 climbed 0.5 per cent.

China's key Shanghai Composite stock index posted a strong rebound after the market's recent pummelling, while in Japan corporate and sector-specific news dominated the Tokyo stock market, leaving the broad Topix index down 0.5 per cent. Overnight US stocks were mixed. Deal activity, solid economic data and new record highs in several large technology companies were offset by higher bond yields and general scepticism over the outlook for equities.

A $26 billion buy-out of Hilton Hotels by Blackstone ignited other stocks in the hotels sector and also boosted real estate companies.

Back yesterday, US stock-index futures rose after Bausch & Lomb Inc. received a takeover bid and investors speculated a government report may show enough job growth to keep the economy expanding.

The financial news was compiled by Valletta Fund Management (Tel. 8007 2344) and Bank of Valletta plc (Tel. 2131 2020). BOV and VFM are licensed by the MFSA to conduct investment services business.