The positive rally in the international equity indices was halted this week as some leading indices fell for the first time in seven weeks, despite a market rally on Friday.
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the week 0.68% down and the Standard and Poor's 500 down 0.35%. On the other hand, the Nasdaq Composite managed to gain 1.26% and extended its positive rally to seven consecutive weeks.
On Friday, all these indices rose over 1.5% on reports of some better-than-expected economic news.
In Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.32% on the week and the FTSE 100 index in London was up 1.56%. Meanwhile, the Xetra Dax in Frankfurt was practically unchanged, down just 0.04% on the week.
Similar to the US markets, Friday saw the European indices rally over three per cent as G7 finance ministers predicted that a weak economic recovery will begin later this year.
The Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) advanced again this week, reaching 2,825.915 points, a 2.84% gain over the previous week. Eight equities were traded during the week, half of which closed higher and the other half losing some ground.
HSBC Bank Malta plc (HSBC), Bank of Valletta plc (BoV), Lombard Bank plc, and Malta International Airport plc (MIA) were all net gainers, while Go plc, International Hotel Investments plc (IHI), Fimbank plc and Global Capital plc reported losses.
The best performer this week was BoV with steady gains reaching over 16%, while Global Capital performed worst, losing nearly half its value.
This week saw 365 deals registered on the MSE with a turnover of over €14.5 million, which is double the value traded a week ago. Such increase in volume was generally seen in every asset class.
In the equity market, there were 232 transactions for a total of €1.8m, while in the government bond market 57 deals were carried out for a total of nearly €3.4m. There were 60 deals in the corporate bond market for a total of €388,974, while 16 transactions took place in the Treasury Bills market for a total of €9m.
BoV logged the best performance of the week with the share price strengthening almost on a daily basis except on Friday. The rebound was sparked off on Monday on very low volumes. However, trading in the equity gathered significant momentum in the following trading days before losing steam on Friday, after a total of 70,841 shares had been traded in 87 deals.
By the end of the week, BoV's share price managed to accumulate a very strong gain of 16.4% to close at €2.56, having traded at a high of €2.60.
The market awaits the bank's results for the six months ending March 31, which are due to be published on Thursday.
HSBC on the other hand had a fairly mixed week, with most of the healthy gains in the initial trading days being eroded by the end of the week. These mixed movements were sustained by steady volume throughout the week as 112,051 shares changed hands in 94 deals.
Nevertheless, the equity ended the week slightly higher, posting a decent gain of 3.52%. Intra-week this share managed to trade at the €2.60 level but closed the week at €2.44.
Go's share price remained practically unchanged throughout the week with low volumes being traded. A meagre 0.06% was shaved off the share price, which closed the week at €1.549 after having traded at a low of €1.499, as 23,529 shares were exchanged in 21 deals.
Lombard posted solid gains throughout this week with its share price climbing a very healthy 8.16% to close at €2.65 following 19 deals involving 509,097 shares. The bulk of this very heavy volume occurred on Thursday when 500,000 shares changed hands in five deals.
MIA shares enjoyed a positive week with the share price strengthening 5.34% to close at €2.17 by the last trading day of the week, as 1,700 shares were exchanged over five tranactions.
Both Fimbank and IHI shares registered losses this week, mainly in the last trading day, with the former losing 1.16% and the latter shedding 3.82% from their previous week's closing price, both on very light volumes.
Fimbank this week successfully concluded its bond issue, which was closed within 90 minutes of opening.
Global Capital plc's share price lost a staggering 49.77% of its value following a single trade on Friday of a meagre 480 shares at €1. The equity had last traded on October 9, 2008.
On Friday, Gasan Finance plc announced that the pre-placement agreement entered with financial intermediaries, of their 6% bond due 2014-2016 was closed. The issue will open for investors tomorrow.
This article, which was compiled by Jesmond Mizzi Financial Services Limited (JMFS), does not intend to give investment advice and the contents therein should not be construed as such. JMFS is licensed to conduct investment services by the MFSA. The directors or related parties, including the company, and their clients are likely to have an interest in securities mentioned in this article. For further information contact JMFS at 67/3, South Street, Valletta or on Tel: 2122 4410 or e-mail jmizzi@jmfs.net.