The Malta Stock Exchange index registering a further decline of just over one per cent to close the week at 3,080.611.
In the week the index was succumbed to selling pressure in three sessions, in which it gathered a notable loss of over two per cent. On the contrary, it advanced by 1.1 per cent on Monday and Friday, but this proved insufficient in repositioning the index into positive territory.
International Hotels Investments plc was the main dragger for the week, followed by most of the active financial equities.
Conversely, Malta International Airport plc posted gains following their weeks of flat trading, while Crimsonwing plc extended its bullish trend.
The week was characterised by 14 equities being active, in which gainers and losers tallied to six, while non-movers totalled to two. Total turnover increased to €1.1 million traded over 891,749 shares, which were executed over 159 transactions.
Meanwhile, in the Government Stock Market, as markets opted for an unstable position following the re-emerging headwinds from Spain and Greece, in addition to negative rumours with regards to the so-called “fiscal cliff” in America, investors expressed conviction to local sovereign debt. In fact, from the 19 active stocks, 14 gained ground, four edged lower while one closed unchanged. Total turnover for the week totalled to €1.8 million.
In the Corporate Bonds market, yields were rather mixed as from the 19 active stocks five posted gains, four edged lower, while ten closed flat. The 5.35% BOV 2019 issue was the best performer with a 1.5 per cent appreciation.
In the equity market, International Hotels Investments plc emerged as the prime loser for the week. In fact, the hoteliers’ equity plummeted by 6.1 per cent over two sessions to close the week at €0.751. Accounting for this week’s loss the equity marked 22 per cent depreciation over two weeks. A total of 73,102 shares changed hands across nine trades.
Likewise, from the banking sector, Bank of Valletta plc shaved-off 2.5 per cent from its value. The declines were mainly conditioned by the ex-dividend element which took place on Thursday. Other than that, the equity slipped by a minimal 0.2 per cent on Wednesday, while it gained 0.8 per cent on Friday. The banking equity had the lion’s share as total trading volume amounted to 228,784 trading over 70 transactions and closed the week at the €2.399 price level.
In line with its peers, both Lombard Bank plc and FIMBank plc ended the week on a sour note. The former slipped by 1.1 per cent over eight deals of 31,054 shares to close at €1.78, while the latter turned negative by 1.3 per cent following last week’s unchanged position to end at $0.78.
Conversely, HSBC Bank Malta plc managed to snap back close to two per cent gain following the remarkable four per cent loss incurred over the previous two weeks. The equity was active in four sessions in which it ascended in three, while it posted a marginal decline of 0.4 per cent on Tuesday but managed to retouch the €2.70 price level.
Meanwhile, the other active financial for the week was Middlesea Insurance plc which closed flat at €0.74 over a single session of 2,000 shares.
From the telecommunications sector, Go plc added a further one per cent following the last appreciation of 1.01 per cent recorded in the last week of October. The equity closed the week at €1.01 despite trading at an intra-week low of €0.98.
Likewise, Malta International Airport plc returned to winning times after three weeks of unchanged positions. The airport operator rose by 1.1 per cent yesterday after it swayed from negative to positive in the first two sessions of the week. A total of 54,600 shares took place across seven transactions to end at €1.77. In a brief review of the company’s business on Thursday, the company stated that passenger movement from January to October 2012 grew by 3.7 per cent when compared to the same period last year.
From the postal industry, Maltapost plc continued its recent incline position by topping a further two per cent to its value. The equity was active over a significant volume of 125,883 shares to close the week at the €0.75 level.
Meanwhile, from the IT sector Crimsonwing plc extended its streak of gains by capturing a further five per cent gain to close the week at €0.399. Following this week’s appreciation the I.T. operator is heading the list of gainers with a staggering 59.6 per cent gain on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, from the same sector RS2 Software plc closed unchanged at €0.60.
Furthermore, the other gainer for the week was Simonds Farsons Cisk plc which continued to flourish by recording 1.3 per cent advancement on Friday to end the week at €2.43.
Finally, the other active equities were Plaza Centres plc and Island Hotels Group Holdings plc which declined by 1.9 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively.
This article which was compiled by Jesmond Mizzi Financial Advisors Limited, does not intend to give investment advice and the contents therein should not be construed as such.
The company is licensed to conduct investment services by the Malta Financial Services Authority and is a member firm of the Malta Stock Exchange.
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 Jesmond Mizzi Financial Advisors Limited at 67, Level 3, South Street, Valletta, or on Tel: 21224410, or e-mail info@jesmondmizzi.com.