The Malta Stock Exchange index fell marginally yesterday, closing 0.1 per cent lower, to finish at the 3488.277 level, as investor interest in equities was clearly lacking as illustrated by the marked lack of volume.
Loqus Holding plc was the main victim in the session as a single deal of 3,548 shares forced the shares of the IT services company to drop by one cent, or 4.8 per cent, and close at €0.20.
Banking stocks also performed poorly yesterday, as Bank of Valletta plc dropped 2c, giving up Monday’s gains, to close at €3.28 in five trades of 6,419 shares. HSBC Bank Malta plc, meanwhile, was also down, dropping 0c1, to end the day at €2.999, also in five deals of 6,540 shares.
Other stocks to trade in the day yet close unchanged were Go plc, which finished at €1.90 in a single trade of 3,800 shares, and Middlesea Insurance plc, which closed at €1.10 in a single deal of 5,000 shares.
After the close of trading yesterday, Malta International Airport plc announced that starting January 2011, it will begin outsourcing its marketing operations to International Airport Advertising Corporation Ltd. (IACC), in an attempt to maximise its advertising efforts and enhance sales.
Go plc announced yesterday that its board of directors is scheduled to meet on August 31 to approve the group’s interim financial statements for the six-month period ended June 30, 2010.
Weekly US economic review
In the United States, non-farm payrolls decreased by 131,000 in July, the second straight monthly decline as temporary government jobs to conduct the decennial census dropped by 143,000. In the meantime, private employment, a better gauge of labour market health, rose a modest 71,000 after gaining just 31,000 in June. While this is the seventh consecutive increase, employment is rising only at a snail’s pace. The unemployment rate held steady at 9.5 per cent, below the 9.6 per cent expected since the labour force dropped as discouraged workers gave up the search of jobs last month.
In the manufacturing sector, factory orders declined by 1.2 per cent during June. This was more than the 0.5 per cent expected and follows an upwardly revised fall of 1.8 per cent the previous month. Elsewhere, consumer credit declined for the fifth straight month in June as a measure of credit-card debt and non-revolving loans fell by $1.3 billion. However, this was much less than the $5.3 billion decline projected by economists. This shows that Americans are reluctant to spend when unemployment is high and the economic outlook is still uncertain.
In the services sector, the Institute for Supply Management Index (ISM) of non-manufacturing business, which covers about 90 per cent of the economy expanded at a faster pace than forecast. This index rose to a reading of 54.3 in July from 53.8 the previous month. Finally, a measure of consumer confidence fell to a reading of minus 50 in the first week of August from minus 48 the previous week and much higher than the reading of minus 46 which was expected.
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.