Daily Market Highlights (19.07.2019)

MSE Equity Price Index drifts lower on thinner volumes

 

The MSE Equity Price Index eased by 0.27% to 4,807.059 points as the declines in five companies, including BOV, GO and MIA, outweighed the gains in RS2 and Farsons. Meanwhile, HSBC, Main Street Complex and Tigné Mall ended unchanged whilst overall market activity contracted sharply to €0.27 million compared to €0.88 million yesterday. Download today’s Equity Market Summary.

Bank of Valletta plc (29,493 shares) and PG plc (12,000 shares) both shed 1.3% to €1.125 and €1.58 respectively.

Malta International Airport plc erased some of yesterday’s strong uplift as the equity eased by 0.7% back to the €7.10 level across 6,266 shares. The airport operator is due to publish its interim financial results on Thursday 25 July. The Directors will also consider the payment of an interim dividend.

Also among the large companies, GO plc moved back to the €4.52 level (-0.9%) across 8,014 shares.

BMIT Technologies plc continued to trade within a tight range as the equity retracted by 0.9% to the €0.53 level on activity totalling 128,200 shares. The company is scheduled to hold an Extraordinary General Meeting on 6 August in relation to the acquisition of the Handaq data centre.

In the technology sector, RS2 Software plc added 1.1% to the €1.83 level on activity of 21,522 shares.

The other positive performing equity today was Simonds Farsons Cisk plc which advanced by 1% to regain €10.40 level across 1,160 shares.

Meanwhile, HSBC Bank Malta plc retained the €1.52 level across 4,499 shares.

In the property segment, Main Street Complex plc and Tigné Mall plc traded flat at €0.61 and €0.89 on shallow volumes.

The RF MGS Index advanced for the fourth consecutive day as it added a further 0.09% to 1,148.368 points. The prices of five medium-term Malta Government Stocks (including the 1.5% MGS 2027, the 2.3% MGS 2029 and the 1.85% MGS 2029) reached new all-time highs today, whilst the MGS yield curve continued to flatten, amid concerns that the current trade dispute between the US and China is now set to take longer to dissipate. Furthermore, comments made by the President of the New York Federal Reserve fuelled further the expectations that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates during the upcoming two-day monetary policy meeting which is scheduled to take place at the end of this month. In fact, Mr John Williams opined that it would be better for the central bank “to take preventative measures than to wait for disaster to unfold” as “when you only have so much stimulus at your disposal, it pays to act quickly to lower rates at the first sign of economic distress.”