The MSE Equity Price Index added 0.18% to 4,376.099 points on Tuesday, reflecting the gains in the share prices of BOV and Malita which outweighed the declines in Tigne’ Mall, RS2 and Main Street Complex. Trading activity continued to be characterised by low volumes with the total value of equity market trades dropping further to just €0.09 million.
The most actively traded equity was Bank of Valletta plc which recaptured the €1.75 level (+1.2%) on four deals totalling 13,411 shares.
Malita Investments plc climbed 0.6% to its 2018 high of €0.86 albeit on a mere 6,000 shares.
Within the same segment, and also on trivial volumes, Main Street Complex plc eased by 0.7% to the €0.675 level.
Tigne’ Mall plc shed 2.1% to a ten-month low of €0.93 across 20,000 shares. The equity is still trading with the entitlement to a final net dividend of €0.012875 per share.
A single deal of 10,000 shares forced the equity of RS2 Software plc to move 0.8% lower back to the €1.26 level. This morning, the company held its AGM during which shareholders approved all resolutions placed on the agenda, including the payment of a final net dividend of €0.0146 per share. The dividend will now be paid on 26 June.
Meanwhile, HSBC Bank Malta plc maintained the €1.83 level after opening at a low of €1.82 (-0.5%). A total of 14,300 shares changed hands.
On the Alternative Companies List, Loqus Holdings plc traded unchanged at the €0.10 level on insignificant volumes.
The RF MGS Index surged by 0.27% to a near two-week high of 1,103.558 points as euro zone sovereign bond yields drifted markedly lower today amid escalating global trade tensions, in particular between the US and China. Within the single currency area, political uncertainty emerged in Germany after the junior CSU governing party gave the CDU a two-week period for Chancellor Angela Merkel to reach an EU-wide deal on how the country handles migrants from other European countries. Meanwhile, ECB President Mario Draghi explained today that last week’s decisions by the central bank to leave interest rates at their record low until summer 2019 was mainly influenced by the “substantial” need for inflation to improve further.