Sustained demand for Bank of Valletta plc shares helped the equity rise higher to touch a new 7-month high of €2.25 before easing to a close of €2.24 representing a 0.9% increase over last Friday's close. A total of 17,737 shares were exchanged across seven trades.
Following today's upturn, BOV's share price has moved into positive territory since the start of this year with a 0.8% gain. Next month marks the end of the Bank's financial year with the preliminary results generally published by the end of October.
On the other hand, HSBC Bank Malta plc's share price (which has been retreating for the past four consecutive weeks) retreated by a further 1.5% during this morning's session to €2.60 across six trades totalling 6,833 shares. Nonetheless, similar to BOV's equity, HSBC is currently 0.8% above their value at the beginning of 2012.
GO plc retreated to its lowest level since 4 June 2012. The share price slumped another 7.1% today to the €0.92 level across eleven trades totalling just over 87,000 shares. This renewed downturn is possibly in view of Forgendo's (in which GO has a 50% shareholding) promised participation in Forthnet's €30 million rights issue approved last week.
Grand Harbour Marina plc's share price dropped by 6.5% to a fresh 55-month low of €1.709 on a single trade of 1,000 shares ahead of the half-year results publication on 29 August.
All three other active equities closed the trading session unchanged with 1,050 Lombard Bank Malta plc shares changing hands at the equity's multi-year low of €2.00 following the reported 36.5% drop in the Bank's profitability. Meanwhile, Medserv plc held on to €3.95 level across 1,000 shares ahead of this week interim results publication. Similarly, a single trade of 4,000 Malta International Airport plc shares was executed at the €1.74 level, unchanged from the previous close.
On the bond market, the Rizzo Farrugia MGS Index eased minimally lower to 998.067 points as Eurozone yields edged marginally higher to surpass the 1.35% level. Markets are still awaiting details with respect to the European Central Bank's (ECB) plans to buy bonds of ailing countries in the region.
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