Sustained demand for Bank of Valletta plc shares lifted the bank’s equity by a further 0.4 per cent to a new 32-month high of €2.49 across 11 deals totalling 33,151 shares.

BOV’s equity advanced for the fourth consecutive week in anticipation of the publication of the group’s preliminary full-year results by the end of the month.

The only other positive performing equity today was Tigné Mall plc as its share price inched minimally higher to 51c2 on a single deal of 68,000 shares.

On the other hand, the share price of HSBC Bank Malta plc eased for the second time this week with a further 0.8% decline back to the €2.62 level on volumes of 41,170 shares.

Similarly, MaltaPost plc failed to hold on to its intra-week high of €1.10 as the share price dropped 4.5 per cent to the €1.05 level on low volumes of just over 2,000 shares. The postal operator generally publishes its preliminary financial statements in early December.

Meanwhile, the only other active equity, International Hotel Investments plc, traded unchanged at the 83c level on a trade of 2,000 shares.

On the bond market, the Rizzo Farrugia MGS Index continued to recover this week’s earlier declines with a further 0.1% increase to 1,018.469 points representing a marginal increase over last week’s close.

Today’s upturn reflects the further decline in Eurozone yield to below the 1.85 per cent level on increased speculation that the US Federal Reserve will postpone the tapering of its stimulus measures to counter act the adverse economic effects emanating from the US fiscal uncertainties on the global recovery.

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