The MSE Equity Price Index extended Tuesday's gains as it added a further 0.13% to 4,471.951 points. Four equities, including RS2, FIMBank and MIA, trended higher during today’s session. On the other hand, five shares ended the day lower while another four closed unchanged. Trading volumes contracted to €0.35 million from Tuesday's three-week high of €0.43 million.
RS2 Software plc rebounded by 3.5% to recapture the €1.18 level on encouraging volumes totalling 99,923 shares.
Malta International Airport plc regained the €6.20 level (+1.6%) on 2,000 shares. Today, MIA published the October 2018 traffic results revealing an 8.4% increase in passenger movements to 646,559 movements – a new record for the month of October. During the ten months up to October 2018, more than 5.9 million passenger movements were registered representing a 13.5% increase over the previous corresponding period.
FIMBank plc also performed positively on Wednesday with a 2.6% increase to the $0.80 level across 37,500 shares.
In the property segment, Trident Estates plc recaptured the €1.50 level (+0.7%) albeit on just 7,316 shares.
In contrast, a number of other real-estate related equities closed the session in negative territory on light volumes. Malta Properties Company plc retracted by 1% to €0.515 across 2,500 shares. Plaza Centres plc slipped 2.9% back to the €1.00 level on a single trade of 10,000 shares. Likewise, a single deal of 5,600 shares was executed in MIDI plc at the €0.68 level representing a 5.6% drop from the previous closing price.
Santumas Shareholdings plc also tumbled 4.3% to the €1.35 level on two deals totalling 15,490 shares.
GO plc erased 2% as its share price slipped back to the €4.00 level across 8,661 shares.
Meanwhile, Bank of Valletta plc and HSBC Bank Malta plc closed unchanged at the €1.35 and €1.75 levels respectively. A total of 30,312 shares of BOV shares changed hands today while activity in HSBC shares was insignificant.
A single deal of 100,000 shares left the equity of Main Street Complex plc unchanged at the €0.65 level.
Mapfre Middlesea plc held on to the €1.93 level on trivial activity.
The RF MGS Index trended higher for the first time in four days as it rebounded by 0.12% to 1,084.250 points. Malta Government Stock prices gained ground as yields in the euro area drifted lower amid no major surprises in the conclusion of the US mid-term elections. Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve began its two-day monetary policy meeting on Wednesday. Markets are not expecting any changes in interest rates but will nonetheless be attentive to any indications about any possible further interest rate hikes in the coming months.
Stock markets are volatile and subject to fluctuations which cannot be reasonably foreseen. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.