The Share Index eased marginally lower this morning to 4,521.012 points as declines in Medserv and Malta Properties Company offset increases in the share prices of Lombard and FIMBank.
Over the week, the local equity benchmark edged 0.8 per cent higher largely due to the 3.7 per cent weekly increase in HSBC’s share price as well as gains in the large cap equities of BOV, MIA and GO.
During today’s session, the share price of Medserv slipped 5.6 per cent lower to the €1.68 level albeit on shallow volumes of 3,930 shares.
Medserv’s Lapsed Rights Offer period opened today and closes on January 27. A total of 3.5 million shares are available for subscription during the auction process at a minimum bid price of €1.50.
Last Friday, the oil and gas logistics company unveiled that it was awarded two full service logistics contracts offshore Libya having an estimated value of between of €2 to €3 million.
These are expected to commence in the second quarter of 2016 and will require Medserv to utilise both their Malta base facilities and their Libyan branch.
Similarly, Malta Properties Company retreated by 1.5 per cent back to the 58c level across four deals totalling 12,500 shares.
On the other hand, the share prices of FIMBank (63cUS) and Lombard Bank (€2.43,5) edged 1.6 per cent and 1.5 per cent higher respectively albeit on shallow volumes.
Meanwhile, Bank of Valletta maintained the €2.24 level after managing to recover from an intra-day low of €2.22 across 21 deals totalling 47,819 shares – representing 52 per cent of today’s value traded.
Likewise, HSBC continued to trade at the €1.79,5 level albeit on lower volumes of 12,100 shares.
Malta International Airport also ended this morning’s session unchanged at its all-time high of €4.35 on low volumes of just over 7,000 shares.
RS2 Software also held on to its previous closing price of €3.29 on a single trade of 1,500 shares.
The equity of MaltaPost also closed the day unchanged at the €1.92 level across 10,330 shares. The postal operator is scheduled to pay out the recently declared net interim dividend of 4c per share on February 12 for shareholders who opted to take the dividend in cash. The shares allotted via the scrip dividend will also be distributed and listed on the Malta Stock Exchange in the coming weeks.
The only other active equity was MIDI with just 500 shares changing hands at the 35c level representing no change from the previous closing price.
On the bond market, the RF MGS Index reversed most of yesterday’s decline as it rebounded by 0.39 per cent to 1,139.616 points.
During yesterday’s monetary policy meeting of the European Central Bank, the governing council decided to keep interest rates unchanged but indicated that further expansionary measures might be considered at its next meeting to be held in March.
The initial positive reaction across Eurozone bond markets forced the yield of the 10-year benchmark German Bund down to the 0.43 per cent level. However, this was short-lived as the 10-year Bund yield quickly regained the 0.48 per cent level by this morning - only marginally lower than the 0.49 per cent level of yesterday.
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