Financial news

The Malta Stock Exchange Index shed more than 18 points, or 0.5 per cent yesterday as trading volumes returned to normal. Volume registered at 119,862 shares across 35 deals as banking shares continued to take up the lion’s share of the trading action.

Bank of Valetta plc shares dropped 5c, or 1.7 per cent, to close at €2.900 in relatively low volume of nine deals for a total of 13,386 shares.

Shares of the other large retail bank, HSBC Bank Malta plc, closed unchanged in very light volume of 4,628 shares across four deals.

Also in the banking sector, Lombard Bank Malta plc and FIMBank plc, also closed unchanged, ending the day at €3.060 and US$0.900, respectively. Lombard witnessed heavy volume of 65,495 shares across 17 deals, while trading in FIMBank was also robust with 31,650 shares across three deals changing hands.

Malta International Airport plc was also the target of negative investor sentiment as shares in the local airport operator shed 3c, or 1.7 per cent, to finish the day at €1.730 in a single deal of 2,700 shares.

The other equity to trade in the session was that of the local telecommunications provider, Go plc, which also finished the session lower, dropping 1c1, or 0.7 per cent, to end at €1.650 in a single deal of 2,000 shares.

Weekly eurozone economic review

New Industrial orders in the eurozone in January barely rose above those of December, as the holiday month witnessed a surge in big ticket items. Growth in annual terms came in at 20.9 per cent, 1.7 per cent above a revised 19.2 per cent figure for December. Analysts had expected new orders growth to come in at 21.4 per cent and blamed the volatile heavy transport sector for the shortfall. On a monthly basis, new orders for the 17 countries that use the euro increased 0.1 per cent from December. Excluding orders for ships, the railway and aerospace sectors, new orders were up 1.6 per cent on the month and 22.4 per cent from a year earlier. Of 11 eurozone countries for which data was provided, new orders rose in three – Germany, Ireland and Spain – and fell in eight, including a 34.5 per cent drop in new euro-zone member Estonia.

Investment flowed out of the eurozone in January, according to the region’s balance of payments data released by the European Central Bank (ECB) on Friday. Net seasonally adjusted outflows amounted to €19.6 billion for the month.

Monthly construction output for January rose by 1.8 per cent over December versus a revised two per cent drop in December over November. On a year-over-year basis, output fell by 4.5 per cent.

Meanwhile the Ministry of Finance this week agreed on details of a new bailout fund with an effective lending capacity of €500 billion. The European Monetary Union will be required to inject €80 billion in cash and provide, if needed, an additional €620 billion.

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.