Financial news

The Malta Stock Exchange continued to trade in the summer doldrums yesterday as the index lost another 14 points, or 0.4 per cent, to close at 3432.618. Not a single issuer on the exchange managed to finish in positive territory.

Shares in the commercial leasing state operator, Plaza Centres plc, were the biggest losers on the day, dropping 11c4, or seven per cent in a single trade of 14,000 shares.

The banking sector also added to the losses as shares in HSBC Bank Malta plc continued to shed market value by dropping another two cents, or 0.7 per cent, to end the session at €2.879 in 10 trades of 6,200 shares.

Bank of Valletta plc shares, meanwhile, dropped 2c, or 0.6 per cent, reversing recent fortunes, to close at €3.298 in 15 deals of 10,423 shares, while FIMbank plc finished unchanged at US$1.01 in four trades of 14,325 shares.

Medserv plc dropped two cents, or almost 0.5 per cent in two trades of 5,000 shares.

Shares in Malta International Airport plc, while trading a good portion of the day in positive territory, failed to sustain its gains, and closed down 3c4, or 2.1 per cent, to close at €1.561, in eight trades of 14,000 shares.

Middlesea Insurance plc, continued its recent tight trading range yesterday, dropping 1c5, or 1.7 per cent, in moderate volume of 10,977 shares across two deals. The other stock to trade on the day was that of Go plc, which finished unchanged at €2.03 in a single trade of 1,000 shares.

Weekly eurozone economic review

In the 16 country members of the euro, the services sector expanded in May at a pace not seen since August of 2007. The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for services, which covers activities from banks to restaurants, rose to a reading of 56.2 last month, from 55.6 in April.

The Index also showed an end to an almost two-year stretch of job losses among services companies. Meanwhile, eurozone producer prices rose more than expected in April, driven mainly by more expensive energy. In fact, prices at factory gates rose 0.9 per cent month-on-month for an annual 2.8 per cent increase.

Retail sales unexpectedly registered their largest monthly decline in more than a year during April as sales dropped by 1.2 per cent from March. The drop was largely due to rising unemployment, which rose to the highest level in almost 12 years in April, prompting households to cut back on spending.

Elsewhere, European investor sentiment rose in June, rebounding from the biggest plunge in almost two years. An index measuring sentiment in the euro region rose to a negative 4.1 from its prior negative 6.4 in May. The rebound was driven by institutional investors, who seem to have overreacted to the debt crises affecting some countries within the euro area.

A strong increase in inventories fuelled eurozone economic growth in the first quarter despite a negative net contribution from trade, falling investment and household demand. Eurostat revised up the first quarter year-on-year Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth number to 0.6 per cent from its previously estimated 0.5 per cent.

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.