HSBC, MIA and MaltaPost continue to march on

During this morning’s trading session on the Borza, the equities of HSBC Bank Malta plc, Malta International Airport plc and MaltaPost plc all closed higher on sustained demand helping the MSE Share Index close in positive territory for the fourth consecutive session. The Index edged marginally higher to close at 3,874.227 points.

HSBC maintained this week’s upward trend as the equity closed 0.6% higher at €3.53 after touching a new 2011 high of €3.54. Just under 25,000 shares traded today on continued demand for this equity ahead of the publication of the full-year results and the final dividend declaration. HSBC’s equity currently ranks as the second best performer since the start of 2011 with an increase of 8.4%.

Yesterday’s press conference by MIA continued to generate further demand for its shares. The airport operator reported that it expects to maintain the record level of passenger numbers registered during 2010 of 3.29 million. MIA’s share price gained a further 1.1% to a 58-month high of €1.83 on activity amounting to 13,600 shares. The presentation delivered yesterday may be downloaded from https://rizzofarrugia.com/wp-content/uploads/MIA-Traffic-Results-2010-and-Forecast-2011.pdf.

MaltaPost’s equity closed at an all-time high of €1.01 on volumes of 26,700 shares. The Company is scheduled to hold its Annual General Meeting next Monday 31 January. In the 2010 Annual Report, MaltaPost revealed that that the Board of Directors approved the acquisition of the Company’s Head Office in Marsa and another building in central Valletta to host Malta’s first Postal Museum.

Meanwhile Bank of Valletta plc eased another 0.2% to the €3.14 level on declining volumes of 10,808 shares. The Bank is shortly expected to publish its Interim Directors’ Statement updating the market on the Bank’s operational performance since the last financial year ended 30 September 2010.

The equity of Lombard Bank Malta plc also continued to under-perform the overall equity market. Lombard’s share price succumbed to further selling pressure as the equity lost 5.5% to the €2.60 level on five trades totalling 3,780 shares.