The share index declined by 0.4 per cent from its three-week high to 4,544.983 points largely due to the plunge in the equity of IHI.
Total value traded improved notably as just over €386,000 worth of shares changed hands. Over the week, the local equity benchmark gained 0.81 per cent mainly reflecting the weekly increases in HSBC, MIA and RS2.
Following the 9.4 per cent jump of last Wednesday, International Hotel Investments retreated back to its one-year low of 64c (-8.6 per cent) across 11 deals totalling 150,000 shares.
In the property segment, Malta Properties Company and Plaza Centres also registered declines. MPC lost 1.8 per cent as it slid back to the 56c level across 12,539 shares. A single deal of 23,000 shares pulled the equity of Plaza one per cent lower back to the €1.03,5 level.
Meanwhile, a single deal of 17,900 MIDI shares was executed at its four-year high of 38c representing no change from the previous closing price.
On Monday, MIDI announced a record post-tax profit figure of €9.92 million. The company also declared a final net dividend of 0.7c per share, payable on May 27 to all shareholders as at close of trading on April 7, subject to shareholders’ approval at an annual general meeting to be held on May 12.
Similarly, 6PM Holdings held on to its all-time high of 85p across 9,000 shares. On Monday, 6PM revealed that, subject to the satisfactory conclusion of a due diligence exercise, interested parties were expected to launch a voluntary bid in an attempt to acquire all the shares of the company. An extraordinary general meeting about the matter will be held in due course.
GO plc also maintained its five-month high of €3.45 across heightened activity totalling 11,261 shares. The equity will continue to trade with the entitlement to the recently declared final net dividend of €0.10 per share until 7 April.
On the other hand, RS2 Software continued to recover from recent sharp declines as it edged up for the eighth consecutive trading session to regain the €3.78 level (+0.8 per cent) across 25,800 shares.
In the banking sector, Bank of Valletta and HSBC also closed this morning’s session higher. BOV regained the €2.27 level (+0.9 per cent) across 39,859 shares while HSBC traded for the first time in over a week as it advanced to the €1.60 level (+1.3 per cent) across 8,768 shares.
A single deal of just 1,300 shares lifted the equity of Medserv up by 1.8 per cent to the €1.73 level.
On the bond market, the RF MGS Index eased 0.07 per cent lower to 1,155.068 points as the 10-year benchmark German Bund yield advanced from the 0.15 per cent level of last Wednesday to 0.16 per cent today.
Eurozone yields remained broadly under pressure as fresh data showed that consumer prices remained in deflationary territory.
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