Jamaica’s trade deficit narrowed between January and May this year, compared to the same period in 2013 by US$125 to US$1.78 billion. For the same period last year, the trade deficit narrowed by just US$36 million.
The 2014 improvement emanated from imports of US$2.4 billion, a decrease of US$224 million or 8.5 percent and exports of US$616 million, down from US$715 million for the comparable 2013 period. The value of exports fell by US$99 million or 13.9 percent. Decline in fuel, food and beverage imports accounted for the bulk of the decline and alumina exports accounted for 14 percent of the export decline and non-traditional exports the rest.
Imports| Mineral Fuels import amounted to US$856 million, compared to the US$966 million for the January to May 2013 period. Imports of Raw Materials and Intermediate Goods fell to US$1.45 billion, a decrease of US$265 million or 15.4 percent. Imports of Other Fuel and Lubricants with the US$513 million was lower than the US$576 million recorded for the similar period of 2013, with a decline of US$63 million or 11 percent. Crude Oil imports at US$342 million, moved from US$389 million in the similar period of 2013, a fall of US$47 million or 12 percent.
Industrial supplies declined by US$146 million to US$350 million and Food and Beverages fell from US$146 million in the 2013 period to US$129 million. Capital Goods excluding Motor Cars increased moving from US$203 million to US$218 million in the current January to May 2014 period. Machinery and Equipment was the main contributor to the increase in this group moving up by 18.4 percent to US$121 million.
Traditional exports declined by 4.7 percent to US$327 million for review period versus the previous 2013 period due mainly to a decline in Alumina of US$13.5 million. Non-traditional exports decreased during the January to May 2014 by US$81 million or 23.7 percent to US$259.9 million. Statistical Institute of Jamaica (Statin) who compiled the data did not state which item accounted for the largest portion of the decline. Previous information indicate that export of ethanol fell sharply due to low demand in the USA market for the product.
Archives for August 2014
Trade balance maintains improvement to May
Sweet River IPO falls well short of target
Sweet River Abattoir & Supplies Company initial public offering (IPO) missed by a huge margin, the amounted targeted to be raised, when it closed on August 26, the scheduled date for the closure. The IPO targeted $180 million to be raised from the sale of 46.6 million shares to the public.
According to VMBS Wealth Management, brokers to the issue, “preliminary numbers indicate that subscribers applied for approximately 30.6 million shares totaling approximately $118 million”. The minimum amount to be raised to facilitate listing on the junior market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange was $50 million.
The plan was for the amount targeted to be raised, was to be used in the reduction of bank loans, completion of construction of the new factory facility, installation of a solar energy generation system, working capital and payment of the expenses of the IPO.
The result achieved, is not surprising, the price was well in excess of what investors were valuing junior market stocks at. In IC Insider’s comments on the IPO stated “currently, earnings per share works out at 40 cents, placing a valuation of 9.4 times historical earnings. This is well above the junior market valuation. Value, based on netbook assets, works out at 3 times book, again a very high valuation.”
National Flour Mills up 73% more gains coming
National Flour Mills was priced at 75 cents on July 26, last year. At the end of August this year, the stock is selling at $1.30, a gain of 73 percent.
IC insider had the stock as the second on the list of stocks on the Trinidad Stock Exchange, with potential gains, with 252 percent at the end of July last year. It remained as number 2 up to September 20th. By the end of the following week, the stock price moved up to 89 cents and the position slipped to number 4 top potential gainer, with likely gains of 197 percent as the price rose.
At the end of December, the potential declined to 172 percent, but it was still at 4th position. By July the stock moved back into number 2 position as the earnings were upgraded to 16 cents per share in April, with potential gains of 252 percent once more.
The stock sits at number 5 presently, with a potential gain of 171 percent. Immediately below at 114 percent, is Massy Holdings. Citizens Bank sits next with likely gains of 68 percent and Republic with 42 percent. At the top is Trinidad Cement with 256 percent followed by Point Lisas with 210 percent, Guardian 207 percent and Berger 205 percent.
Since July last year, the performance of some of the IC Insider potential gainers on the Trinidad Stock Exchange are, Trinidad Cement with gains of 178 percent, First Citizens, 52 percent from its IPO price, Massy Holdings 17 percent, One Caribbean Media 39 percent, Point Lisas and Republic Bank 11 percent each.
More buying than selling on Friday as J$ gains
In Friday’s forex trading, authorized dealers sold less foreign currency than they bought, with excess of US8 million bought on the last day of the week. Dealers also bought more funds during the entire week, than they sold. A total of the equivalent of US$59,234,779 was purchased, versus US$28,770,917 on Thursday, and dealers sold the equivalent of US$51,274,373 compared to US$28,745,973 on Thursday.
In US dollar trading, dealers bought US$52,907,403 compared to US$23,454,602 on Thursday. The buying rate for the US dollar rose 15 cents to $112.46. US$46,929,455 was sold versus US$25,367,229 on Thursday, the selling rate declined 4 cents to $112.74.
The Canadian dollar dollar buying rate declined 65 cents to $101.75 with dealers buying C$1,016,453 and selling C$808,689 at an average selling rate that climbed 34 cents to $103.75.
The rate for theBritish Pound rose by 13 cents to $185.64, for the purchase of £3,043,130, while £1,947,414, was sold, as the rate fell $1.10 to $186.57. 
Other currencies bought, amounted to the equivalent of US$384,582, while selling was the equivalent of US$377,906.
Highs & Lows| The highest buying rate for the US dollar, fell 5 cents to $112.90, the lowest buying and the highest selling rates remained unchanged at $91.85 and $117.70 respectively while the lowest selling rate fell $18.15 to $91.85. The highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar dipped 49 cents to $105, the lowest buying rate gained 50 cents to $81.96, the highest selling rate rose 9 cents to $106.01 and the lowest selling rate is up 25 cents to $99. The highest buying rate for the British Pound, rose 20 cents to $187.20, the lowest buying rate and lowest selling rate were unchanged at $149.57 and $180.20 respectively. The highest selling rate fell $2.07 to $190.74.
Cable & Wireless trades 23.5m shares on JSE
In Friday’s trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, Cable & Wireless dominated trading with 23.5 million shares, valued at $7 million, in 8 different lots. The price of the stock slipped at the close of the market, on a day when the prices of 8 stocks rose and 8 declined as 24 securities changed hands, resulting in 25,186,205 shares trading, valued at $15,293,836.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index dropped by 140.37points to 71,602.04 and the JSE All Jamaican Composite index fell 156.95 points to close at 78,772.29.
Gains| The volume and last traded prices of stocks with gains, at the end of trading in the main market, are Berger Paints with 7,500 gained 2 cents at $1.62, Jamaica Money Market Brokers with 23,600 shares to close with a gain of 5 cents at $7, Mayberry Investments 78,468 shares traded closed 5 higher at $1.65, National Commercial Bank with 107,897 shares changing hands closed 1 cent higher at $18, Proven Investments ordinary share traded 25,300 units with 0.25 US cents gain at 17.25 US cents, Sagicor Group had 39,030 shares trading at 16 cents, to end at $9.40 and Scotia Group 21,000 units to end at 2 cents higher at $18.84.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in price with volume and last traded prices, are Grace Kennedy with 7,960 closed at $59, Jamaica Broilers had 10,175 units changing hands at $4.70, Sagicor Real Estate Fund with 30,000 units traded at $6.85 and Scotia Investments 3,000 shares closed at $21.40.
Declines| The volume and last traded prices of stocks with losses at the at the end of trading in the main market are, Cable & Wireless lost 2 cents I trading 23,460,586 shares with a loss of 2 cents to 30 cents, Caribbean Cement with 16,748 lost 14 cents to $2.04, Carreras with 10,193 shares lost 1 cent to end at $34.89, Desnoes & Geddes 342,700 shares changed hands at 19 cents lower at $4.60, Jamaica Producers had 61,440 shares changing hands at $15.60 after losing 5 cents and Buy Rated Radio Jamaica lost 22 cents while trading 319,350 shares to end at $1, for a 52 weeks low.
Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers 8.75% preference share traded 17,000 units at $3.
Junior Market| The JSE Junior Market Index declined by 3.97 points to close at 643.12 as 6 stocks traded with 1 advancing and 2 declining.
Gains| Access Financial with 100 units closed 2 cents higher at $10.20 and was the only stocks recording an increase at the end of trading in the junior market.
Firm Trades| Stocks in the junior market that traded to close at the same price as the day before are, Caribbean Cream with 103,000 shares closing at 75 cents, General Accident with 145,448 units closed at $1.40 and Lasco Financial traded 3,000 shares at $1.
Declines| Stocks declining in the junior market at the end of trading, are Lasco Distributors traded 202,000 units at $1.11 as the price lost a cent and Lasco Manufacturing with 150,710 shares closed 5 cents higher at 92 cents.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator had 7 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 3 stocks with offers that were lower.
National Commercial Bank dominates TTSE
Trading on the Trinidad Stock Exchange saw a jump in the volume, but that included a block of 2.54 million units of Jamaica’s National Commercial Bank shares. A total of 12 securities changed hands, with 3 advancing, 4 declining and 5 traded firm, as 2,782,898 units traded, valued at $10,516,225.
The Composite Index lost 1.42 points to close at 1,149.78, the All T&T Index fell by just 0.17 points to close at 1,987.11 and the Cross Listed Index fell by 0.35 points to close at 40.90.
Gains| Stocks increasing in price at the close are, One Caribbean Media that gained 5 cents to end the day at $24.16 while trading 425 shares and Unilever Caribbean with 300 shares, closed with a gain of 3 cents to end at $63.16, for a new 52 weeks high.
Declines| Stocks declining at the end of trading are, National Commercial Bank with 2,542,147 shares changing hands, for a value of $2,550,109 and lost 5 cents to end at $1, Republic Bank traded only 4 units at $121.82 after losing 2 cents, Sagicor Financial Corporation added 45,303 shares, valued at $283,300 and lost a cent at $6.25 and Trinidad Cement pulled back some more from its recent 52 weeks high, to end the day 2 cents lower, at $2.78 while trading 6,500 shares.
Firm Trades| Stocks closing with prices unchanged at the end of trading are, ANSA McAL with 50 units closed at $66.25, Clico Investment Fund with 19,623 shares, valued at $431,706, the price remained at $22, First Citizens Bank closed at $35.95 in trading 1,083 shares, Massy Holdings with 101,963 shares, traded for $6,985,466 and closed at $68.50, National Enterprises closed at $17.75 with 5.500 units trading and National Flour Mills contributed 60,000 shares with a value of $78,000, to close at $1.30.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator had 4 stocks with the bid higher than their last selling prices and 3 stocks with offers that were lower.
9 stocks rose & only 3 fell on JSE
In Thursday’s trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the prices of 9 stocks rose and 3 declined as 20 securities changed hands, resulting in 2,085,438 shares trading, valued at $15,090,664.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index dropped by 81.34 points to 71,742.41 and the JSE All Jamaican Composite index fell 90.95 points to close at 78,929.24.
Gains| The volume and last traded prices of stocks with gains, at the end of trading in the main market are, Cable & Wireless with 513,155 shares to close with a gain of a cent at 32 cents, Carreras gained 15 cents to close at $34.90 with 1,648 units changing hands, followed by Pan Jamaican Investment with 100,836 shares at $48.58, after gaining 7 cents, Sagicor Group 51,878 shares resulted in 1 cent gain to $9.24, Scotia Group with 18,970 shares gained 5 cents to end at $18.82 and Seprod traded only 1,400 units to put on 25 cents at $10.75.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in price with volume and last traded prices, are Berger Paints with 3,420 shares closing at $1.60, Jamaica Broilers with 4,825 traded closed at $4.70, Jamaica Money Market Brokers with 31,655 units at $6.95 and Kingston Wharves 4,000 shares closed at $5.02.
Declines| The volume and last traded prices of stocks with losses, at the at the end of trading in the main market are, Caribbean Cement with 72,438 shares in losing 42 cents, to end at $2.18, National Commercial Bank with 342,852 shares closing 51 cents down at $17.99 and Supreme Ventures losing 6 cents in trading 62,000 units, to finish at $1.80.
Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB) 8.75% preference share traded 686,000 units at $3 and the JMMB 7.50% preference share, traded just 1,000 units at $2.
Junior Market| The JSE Junior Market Index gained 2.65 points to close at 647.09 as only 5 securities traded with 3 advancing and none declining.
Gains| Stocks recording gains at the end of trading in the junior market, are C2W Music gained 2 cents with 5,759 shares to land at 40 cents, General Accident with 902 shares closed 5 cents up at $1.40 and Lasco Manufacturing with 100,000 shares was 2 cents ahead at 97 cents.
Firm Trades| Stocks in the junior market that traded to close at the same price as the day before are, Caribbean Producers that had 21,500 shares trading at $2.36 and Lasco Financial with 61,200 shares ended at $1.
Declines| No stock declined in the junior market at the end of trading.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator had 3 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 4 stocks with offers that were lower.
Three up three down on TTSE
Trading on the Trinidad Stock Exchange on Thursday saw 12 active securities, of which 3 advanced, 3 declined and 6 traded firm. A total of 103,044 units changed hands, with a value of $4,901,363.
The Composite Index declined by 0.98 points to close at 1,151.20, the All T&T Index fell by 1.96 points to 1,987.28 while the Cross Listed Index remained unchanged at 41.25.
Gains| Stocks increasing in price at the close are National Flour Mills contributed 12,112 shares with a value of $15.74 to gain 3 cents to $1.30, for a 52 weeks high, Point Lisas Industrial Port put through 1,000 units at $4.20 with 5 cent gain and Scotiabank gained 10 cents to end at $63.40 while trading 94 shares.
Declines| The stocks declining at the end of trading are National Enterprises with a volume of 20,500 shares traded for $363,875, closed with a 2 cents loss at $17.75, Republic Bank with 31,323 shares changing hands, valued at $3,816,394 to close at $121.84 after losing just 1 cent and Trinidad Cement closed at $2.80 after shedding 5 cents.
Firm Trades| Stocks closing with prices unchanged at the end of trading are Clico Investment Fund with 21,561 shares valued at $474,342 remained at $22. Firstcaribbean International traded 3,460 shares at $5, First Citizens Bank with 1,228 shares closed at $35.95, Guardian Holdings added 10,102 shares valued at $136,520, to close at $13.75, Massy holdings traded 14 shares at $68.50 and West Indian Tobacco with 10 units closed at $118.01.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator had 6 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 1 stock with an offer that was lower.
Buying & selling even on Thursday
In Thursday’s forex trading, authorized dealers sold almost the same amount as they bought, the equivalent of US$28,770,917 was purchased versus US$32,730,124 on Wednesday, and they sold the equivalent of US$28,745,973 compared to US$37,322,163 on Wednesday.
In US dollar trading, dealers bought US$23,454,602 compared to US$27,146,842 on Wednesday. The buying rate for the US dollar was flat at $112.31. US$25,367,229 was sold versus US$33,461,453 on Wednesday, the selling rate declined 2 cents to $112.78.
The Canadian dollar dollar buying rate climbed 13 cents to $102.40 with dealers buying C$1,754,182 and selling C$1,141,386 at an average selling rate that climbed 13 cents to $103.41.
The rate for theBritish Pound rose by 22 cents to $185.51, for the purchase of £1,864,906, while £858,271, was sold, as the rate moved up $1.10 to $187.67. Other currencies bought, amounted to the equivalent of US$636,690, while selling was the equivalent of US$903,985.
Highs & Lows| The highest buying rate for the US dollar, fell 15 cents to $112.95, the lowest buying, the highest and the lowest selling rates remained unchanged at $91.85, $117.70 and $110 respectively. The highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar rose $2.09 to $105.49, the lowest buying rate gained 8 cents to $81.46, the highest selling rate rose 43 cents to $105.92 and the lowest selling rate is up 60 cents to $98.75. The highest buying rate for the British Pound, the lowest buying rate and lowest selling rate were unchanged at $187, $149.57 and $180.20 respectively. The highest selling rate increased $2.28 to $192.81.
Market eases back on Wednesday at JSE
In Wednesday’s trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the prices of 6 stocks rose and 10 declined as 23 securities changed hands, resulting in 3,423,013 units trading, valued at $28,248,377.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index declined 640.32 points to 71,823.75 and the JSE All Jamaican Composite index fell 715.99 points to close at 79,020.19.
Gains| The volume and last traded prices of stocks with gains, at the end of trading in the main market are, National Commercial Bank with 82,727 units, gained 50 cents to close at $18.50, Radio Jamaica gained 7 cents to close at $1.22 while 10,500 units traded, Sagicor Group had 751,235 shares while gaining 3 cents, to close at $9.23 and Scotia Investments with 1,000 shares gained 40 cents to end at $21.40.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in price, with volume and last traded prices are, Berger Paints with 18,336 shares at $1.60, Jamaica Money Market Brokers with 68,000 units changing hands to end at $6.95, Proven Investments US dollar ordinary share, traded 9,269 units at 17 US cents and Pulse Investments with 100,000 shares closed at 35 cents.
Declines| The volume and last traded prices of stocks with losses at the at the end of trading in the main market are, Cable & Wireless with 121,903 units for 3 cents lower at 31 cents, Caribbean Cement with 6,300 shares, lost 20 cents to end at $2.60, Carreras traded 301,057 units with a loss of 15 cents to end at $34.75, Desnoes & Geddes 20,000 units traded at the close at $4.79, with a gain of a cent, Grace Kennedy with 3,329 units lost $1 in falling to $59, Jamaica Producers had 2,343 units going through the market but shed $1.35 to $15.65, Kingston Wharves 33,750 shares was done with a 25 cents loss at $5.02, Scotia Group with 129,116 shares closed 73 cents lower at $18.77 and Seprod 7,140 shares were traded for 25 cents less at $10.50.
Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers 8.75% preference share traded 2,832 units at $3 and Proven Investments 8% preference share had just 1,200 units trading, at $5.
Junior Market| The JSE Junior Market Index gained 0.59 points to close at 644.44 as only 4 securities traded with 2 advancing and 1 declining.
Gains| Stocks recording gains at the end of trading in the junior market, are Jamaican Teas with 1,630,657 shares to gain 5 cents and closed at $3.30 and Lasco Distributors with 102,319 shares, gained 1 cent to $1.12.
Firm Trades| Caribbean Producers with 15,000 units traded at $2.36 and was the only stock in the junior market, that traded and closed at the same price as the day before.
Declines| C2W Music with 5,000 shares, lost 5 cents to close at 38 cents, was the sole stock declining in the junior market at the end of trading
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator had 6 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 6 stocks with offers that were lower.
