The share index rebounded by 0.36 per cent to 4,472.261 points following the declines of the past two days, largely due to the recovery in the share price of IHI on miniscule volumes.
Overall trading activity remained low with only €135,600 worth of shares changing hands. Over the week, the local equity benchmark eased by 1.18 per cent as only two equities registered gains whilst another nine suffered declines.
A single deal of just 200 shares pushed the equity of International Hotel Investments five per cent higher to the 73c5 level.
Bank of Valletta added to yesterday’s gains as it edged up by 0.5 per cent to the €2.23 level across 17,212 shares.
Also among the large caps, HSBC (30,525 shares) and Malta International Airport (959 shares) retreated by 1.1 per cent and 0.5 per cent to the €1.73,1 and €4.33 levels respectively. Both companies are expected to publish their respective 2015 full year results during the fourth week of February.
The equity of Malta Properties Company failed to hold on to an intra-day high of 57c and closed 1.8 per cent lower at the 54c level across 48,280 shares.
The other negative performer was Medserv as a single deal totalling 1,500 shares pulled the equity down 0.3 per cent to the €1.64,5 level. Recently, 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. The market now awaits the results of the lapsed rights offer and the commencement of trading in the bonds and new shares as from February 8.
GO held on to yesterday’s gains and traded again at the €3.19 level on a single trade of 1,000 shares.
Last week, GO announced that it exercised its option of increasing its stake in the Cypriot telecoms company Cablenet from the current level of 25 per cent to 51 per cent. Moreover, yesterday, the company confirmed that it completed the acquisition of 51 per cent of the share capital of Kinetix IT Solutions Limited.
RS2 Software maintained the €3.27,5 level on a single trade of 750 shares. Likewise, Malita Investments closed unchanged at the 95c level on volumes of 5,260 shares.
On the bond market, the RF MGS Index registered its fourth consecutive gain as it advanced by a further 0.28 per cent to 1,147.263 points – the highest since early December 2015.
Bond yields slumped across the world as the Bank of Japan surprised markets and dropped interest rates to minus 0.1 per cent. The benchmark 10-year German Bund yield dropped sharply from the 0.42 per cent level of yesterday to 0.37 per cent today on heightened expectations that the European Central Bank will take further steps to boost inflation.
The latest data coming out from euro zone’s largest economy showed that prices in Germany fell by 0.8 per cent in January from a month earlier.
www.rizzofarrugia.com