Financial news

Trading activity for yesterday's session on the Malta Stock Exchange ended on a positive note as the Index moved up by 0.3 per cent to close at 3,313.1 points.

In the equity market, HSBC Bank Malta was the day's best performer as the equity rose by 2c or 0.7 per cent to close at the psychologically important €3 level, which is the highest level achieved by the bank for the current year.

Bank of Valletta registered a negligible 0c1 drop in price as it closed practically unchanged at €3.839. Turnover in the bank consisted of 2,409 shares transacted across six deals.

Likewise, both Lombard Bank Malta and FIMBank registered a marginal drop in share price to close at €2.799 and $1.14, respectively.

Go headed the list of gainers as the equity rose by 3c which equates to an increase of 1.7 per cent to terminate at €1.82.

On the contrary, Datatrak Holdings shares fell to an all-time low of €0.11.

Middlesea Insurance issued its Interim Directors' Statement providing a review of its performance in the third quarter of the current year. The company said that its Italian subsidiary continued to report material negative results. On a positive note, local operations have posted positive results, aided by favourable signs of recovery in the global economic and financial environment.

RS2 Software also published its Interim Directors' Statement, stating that profitability for the second half of the year is expected to remain on the same levels as for the first half. The company has seen a reduction in requests for services from existing clients.

Weekly UK economic review

During the past week the Bank of England published the minutes of its last monetary policy meeting held on November 5. The vast majority of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) members agreed on a £25 billion expansion to the quantitative easing programme to support the economy.

However, the decision was not unanimous. In fact, one member favoured that the Asset Purchase Programme would be increased by £40 billion while another member favoured no increase at all. Minutes of the meeting also revealed that the MPC discussed the merits of cutting the remuneration rate the Bank pays on a proportion of commercial bank reserves. Meanwhile, British inflation accelerated in October as it rose by 1.5 per cent last month from a five-year low of 1.1 per cent in September.

Britain's deficit in October was the worst since records begun in 1993 as the longest recession on record ravaged tax revenues. The Office of National Statistics said the public sector posted a net cash requirement of £5.9 billion last month, nearly twice the expectations.

The governments preferred accruals-based measure came in at £11.4 billion, when economists expected a figure of just £7 billion. Public sector net debt as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product came in at 59.2 per cent in October, the highest since records began in 1974/75. Meanwhile, British retail sales rose slightly less than expected in October as they edged up by 0.4 per cent, against an expected increase of 0.5 per cent. In the housing market, the Rightmove House Price Index dropped by 1.6 per cent in November following a 2.8 per cent increase a month earlier.

This article has been prepared by Bank of Valletta p.l.c. (the Bank), which is licensed to conduct investment services business by the MFSA, for your general information only. This information is not a solicitation or offer by the Bank to acquire or sell securities. Nor does it constitute any form of advice by the Bank. Appropriate advice should be obtained before making any such decision. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance and the value of your investments may fall or rise.