Financial news

Local equities finished higher for the forth session in the past five trading days, with the MSE Index gaining a further 0.16 per cent to close the mid-week session of the week at 4,877 points. Activity in the bond sector was relatively muted notwithstanding the positive news on government bonds.

HSBC Bank Malta was the day's most actively traded equity with 14,410 shares changing hands across 13 trades.

The equity was also the only one to close the day in positive territory gaining 1c or 0.5 per cent to terminate the session at Lm1.93. At the end of the session, 190 shares remained unsatisfied on the bid side at Lm1.93 while best supply was for 10,000 shares offered at Lm1.95.

Bank of Valletta closed unchanged at Lm3.60 with 4,500 shares being struck across eight transactions.

In contrast, Maltacom registered its third consecutive session of declines, shedding a further 0c5 or 0.4 per cent to finish the day at Lm1.41,5.

The equity has slipped on relatively soft volume, reflecting a general lack in buying interest in the company which has rebranded as GO, one month ago.

In the fixed interest sector of the market, bond prices reacted positively to news that Moody's Investors Services upgraded the country's local currency government bond rating to A2 from A3, with a positive outlook attached, just hours after the European Union's final decision to allow Malta to adopt the euro on January 1, 2008.

Activity was somewhat quiet with just two corporate bonds and seven government stocks attracting trades.

Trading volumes indicate the presence of only retail investors in the market, with institutions remaining out of the market following the Central Bank of Malta immediate increase of its bid prices across the whole curve.

European stocks fall led by banks and exporters

Yesterday, European stocks fell for a second day, led by banks and exporters, on concern that mounting US mortgage losses will hamper the world's biggest economy and slow global expansion. By late morning, the FTSEurofirst 300 was down 0.5 per cent. German stocks were hardest hit. The Dax index, which hit a new six-year high this week, was down 1.2 per cent.

London equities tracked heavy overnight falls in the US and Asia with the FTSE 100 trading sharply lower. The blue-chip index lost 0.4 per cent by midday while the mid-cap FTSE 250 shed 0.5 per cent. High oil prices were still a worry for the likes of Carnival, down 2.6 per cent, and British Airways, lower by 1.8 per cent.

Tokyo shares tumbled to their lowest close in two weeks, battered by an overnight tumble in US stock markets and the yen hitting a one-month high against the dollar. The benchmark Nikkei 225 average ended the trading day off 1.1 per cent, while the broader Topix index was down 1.2 per cent.

US stock-index futures advan-ced as investors shrugged off concern about the housing market and bet that second-quarter earnings will beat analyst estimates.

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.