Following the mid-week pause, investors at the Malta Stock Exchange during yesterday's session continued where they had left off and persisted in their buying activity, notwithstanding the fact that most equities are already trading at record highs.
Bank of Valletta leaped 13c6 or almost two per cent as 7,334 shares were exchanged across 17 transactions. Speculation and lack of supply saw the price close at a fresh record of Lm7.25 after briefly touching an all-time high of Lm7.25,1. At the end of the session 3,508 shares were best bid at Lm7.25 while supply was for 3,500 shares at a lofty Lm7.45.
HSBC Bank Malta was the most actively traded equity with Lm170,814 worth of shares being exchanged across 27 deals. The price moved in pursuit of Bank of Valletta, jumping 10c or 1.40 per cent to similarly close at the Lm7.25 level.
Likewise, Lombard Bank consolidated at their record high of Lm7.25 as 2,714 shares were exchanged across three transactions.
Maltacom attracted its fair stake of the dealings with 27,549 shares being exchanged across 17 trades. The equity increased modestly to terminate the session at Lm1.72c9, leaving 1,500 shares best bid at Lm1.70,1 and 2,622 shares offered at Lm1.74.
Elsewhere in the market, 21,031 shares of International Hotel Investments were purchased across two trades, pushing the price higher by 1.2 per cent to €0.86.
Deutsche Post raises earnings guidance
Deutsche Post, the German postal group, yesterday upped earnings guidance after closing its £3.8 billion ($4.5 billion) deal with UK logistics group, Exel. The company now expects operating profit to reach €3.7 billion compared to earlier guidance of €3.6 billion. The company is set to benefit from reduced costs for health care as a result of new legislation relating to health insurance which will reduce its costs by about €70 million a year.
European equities were lower yesterday as hints from the US Federal Reserve that its rate-tightening cycle may be approaching an end were not enough to shake the market out of its recent torpor.
Futures trading on Wall Street indicated a weak open yesterday as concern over higher crude put a damper on Tuesday's post Federal Reserve decision rally.
On Tuesday, the Federal Reserve voted unanimously to raise the Fed funds target by another quarter point to 4.25 per cent. The move was largely expected but investors took heart in the Fed's accompanying statement, which suggested that it may stop raising interest rates soon.
London's main equities markets edged higher yesterday as investors warmed to GUS after the retail and financial services conglomerate announced the purchase of a US website. GUS rose 2.6 per cent to £10.09 as its credit information unit Experian said it had bought PriceGrabber.com, a US online price comparison group, for $485 million plus expenses.
Japan's stock market was pushed down sharply yesterday by profit-taking across the board, as investors responded nervously to poorer-than-expected results of the Tankan business confidence survey.