During the mid-week session at the Malta Stock Exchange, investors purchased shares in the two largest capitalised companies which have been severely battered over the past sessions. As a result the MSE Index registered its best session of gain this year closing higher by 2.2 per cent at 4,687 points.

HSBC Bank Malta was the day's top gainer as well as the most actively traded equity with a grand total of 35 deals accounting for 25,635 shares for a total market consideration of €110,939. Following Tuesday's drastic drop where investors, expecting yet another special dividend, sold out in disappointment, yesterday's activity was more driven by the recognition that HSBC Bank Malta published an impressive 19 per cent gain in pre-tax profits, reported at a record €114.7 million.

Buyers immediately commenced their activities as the opening bell rung out and by the end of the session the equity closed higher by €0.221 or 5.2 per cent at €4.499.

Bank of Valletta too saw its fair share of buying activity which brought about a €0.10c or 1.8 per cent gain to its share price which reclaimed the €5.80 level. The day's activity consisted of 12,432 shares which were swapped across 12 transactions.

FIMBank was the only equity to close in negative territory with sellers offloading a total of 32,000 shares across two transactions, with both deals being struck at the $2 level.

For the third consecutive session, Go registered a solitary €0.01 gain. The day's activity saw a further 4,300 shares being cleared off the offer side at the €3.08 level, leaving a further 13,700 shares best supplied at this level against demand for 1,453 shares best bid at €3.06.

Single deals in International Hotel Investments and Malta International Airport did not alter their previous closing price of €1.02 and €3.20 respectively. Elsewhere, 9,515 shares of MaltaPost were swapped across eight transactions with all transactions being conducted at the €0.665 level.

UK economic review - weekly round-up

All nine members of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee backed lower interest rates at the last MPC meeting as the minutes of the February 6 and 7 meeting issued yesterday showed.

Policymakers were concerned that tighter credit conditions meant that interest rates were still restrictive. Analysts had been predicting a 9-0 vote in favour of a 25 basis point cut.

This was not the case as member David Blanchflower called for a precautionary half point cut. Mr Blanchflower emphasised the risks of a "very sharp slowdown" in the United Kingdom. He saw similarities in recent UK data with that in the United States in earlier months.

"The Committee needed to balance the risk that a sharp slowing in activity would pull inflation below the target in the medium term against the risk that elevated inflation expectations would keep inflation above target". Overall there was little evidence in the minutes that suggested that the BOE will embark on an aggressive rate-cutting campaign.

The bank raised its inflation forecast last week and signalled that interest rates may need to stay higher than investors were predicting. The bank's governor King, said that policy makers face a "difficult balancing act" as they try to keep consumer prices under control while cushioning the economy from slowing growth.

This article has been prepared by Bank of Valletta p.l.c. (the Bank), which is licensed to conduct investment services business by the MFSA, for your general information only. This information is not a solicitation or offer by the Bank to acquire or sell securities. Nor does it constitute any form of advice by the Bank. Appropriate advice should be obtained before making any such decision. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance and the value of your investments may fall or rise.