Daily Market Highlights (09.11.16)

The MSE Share Index moved higher for the third consecutive day as it gained a further 0.08% to 4,544.229 points. Trading activity was spread across five equities only, two of which registered gains, another two finished the day lower whilst Malta Properties Company plc maintained the €0.60 level on trivial volumes. Download a copy of today’s Equity Market Summary.

On the bond market, the RF MGS Index advanced minimally to 1,169.354 points. Financial markets were dominated by the news that the Republican nominee Mr Donald Trump won the US Presidential election over the Democratic contender Ms Hillary Clinton. At first, this news sent shock-waves across the world and “safe-haven” assets like gold rallied. Similarly, the benchmark 10-year German Bund yield plunged to an intra-day low 0.093%. However, financial markets later turned relatively calmer and indeed the 10-year Bund returned to the 0.18% level. Nevertheless, many international financial analysts are expecting volatility to remain high as developments unfold. Meanwhile, in its latest economic forecast, the European Commission said that it is expecting euro zone growth to ease to 1.7% this year from 2.0% in 2015 and decelerate further to 1.5% in 2017 before picking up again to 1.7% in 2018. Furthermore, it is anticipating inflation to pick up to 0.3% this year from zero last year and to 1.4% in 2017 and in 2018.

Trading volumes were relatively healthy as €0.31 million worth of shares changed hands today of which nearly €0.25 million (or 79.4%) took place in Bank Valletta plc. The equity eased minimally to €2.328 after touching a fresh near nine-year high of €2.33. A total of 105,647 shares traded today. Shareholders as at close of trading on Monday 14 November will be entitled to a final gross dividend of €0.0852 (net: €0.0554) per share.

Medserv plc dipped to an intra-day new fourteen-month low of €1.46 (-2.0%) before closing at the €1.48 level (-0.7%) across 24,000 shares.

In contrast, Malta International Airport plc extended yesterday’s gains as it advanced by 1.2% to the €4.08 level on volumes totalling 6,157 shares. On Monday, MIA published its October traffic results revealing a 10.4% increase over the same month last year to over half-a-million passengers – the first time that passenger movements exceeded the 500,000 mark in the month of October. During the first ten months of 2016, MIA registered a 7.8% increase in passenger movements to 4.4 million when compared to the same period last year. In July, MIA had revised upwards its passenger forecast for 2016 to +7.5% to an estimated throughput of 4.97 million passengers.

Two deals of just 2,000 lifted the equity of RS2 Software plc 0.1% higher to the €1.599 level.