Tuesday, 29th May 2013 | The market was dominated by Scotia Group with 2.265 million shares trading for value of $49.4 million in a market that traded $59.6 million for the day. The bulk of the trades in this stock were crosses done by Scotia Investments on behalf of clients. The stock jumped $1.24 on the day to close at $21.80. The gain in Scotia, plus a 40 cent increase in Sagicor Life which closed at $8.50, were the main contributors to the 1,452 points rise in the all Jamaica Index which closed above 87,000 points for the first time since February 6^th and it now sits just below January 25^th close of 87,888.49 on a day when advancing stocks again out paced declining stocks 3 to 1 with 12 stocks climbing versus 4 that fell.

Technically speaking | The junior market is heading to the 800 points level before it meets resistance and closed today at 716.63, so the target may not be that far away. The main market has broken the 85,000 mark decisively and today broke a minor resistance level created this year when the market slipped with the NDX and tax announcements. It now looks as if the market’s next serious resistance level is around 130,000 points. Using the all Jamaica Composite index, even if the market moved at the level it did today, it would take until mid-July to reach it.

The challenges the main market faces is that it requires the big companies to fully participate in any major rally to meet such a target within the time frame. So far, two of the big ones, National Commercial Bank (NCB) and Scotia Group, have not made any great moves to lend confidence that they are about to contribute in any major rally. Based on where money market interest rates are and the low level of stock valuation, this level may only be a temporary stop — if it becomes one at all. An indicator of the near-term future of the market can be measured by the advance decline ratio, as well as the number of stocks closing either  bids higher or offers lower than the last sale price. At the end of Tuesday’s trade it was 8 to 1 a positive for continued advances.

Other price movers | Other stocks to post worthwhile moves include Carreras up $2 on Mondays last traded price with the stock closing at $60 with 16,246 units trading between $58 and $60. Jamaica Broilers gained 30 cents to close at $4.90 while trading 86,706 units. All three Lasco companies posted gains in continued response to the 10 for 1 stock split. Distributors gained $1.69 to close at $13.70 with 83,079 shares trading, Financial Services traded only 7,500 units to close $1.20 higher at $9.50 and Manufacturing was up 94 cents on just 5,000 units to close at $13. NCB shed 21 cents, closing at $18.80 as 19,134 units traded. Scotia Investments gained 50 cents with only 1,000 shares changing hands.

Monday, 27th May 2013 | Interest picked up in all three Lasco stocks in response to the proposed 10 for 1 stock split the company announced on Friday after trading.

Lasco Financial traded at $9 shortly after trading started, an all-time high but closed up to $8.30 with 23,836 units traded, still closing at an all-time closing high, nevertheless. Distributors was up $1.51 with 9,748 shares trading at a closing price of $12.01. Manufacturing closed at $12.06 down 44 cents with 5,000 units changing hands. At the close, the bid was for 25,000 units at $12.10 with 43,116 units offered at $16.50.

Carreras dropped $2 to close at $58 as 117,870 units changed ands today. The stock traded as high as $61. Grace continued to move higher with a 29 cents gain, closing at $60.50, NCB closed down $0.99 to $19.01, Scotia Group closed at $20.56 up 9 cents as 85,353 shares traded after the company released better than expected results on Friday after trading had closed. JMMB gained 19 cents to close at $7.99 with 17,000 shares traded.

Trading was moderate with only $12,352,416 being spent on stocks on a day when only the junior market index registered a gain. The advance decline ratio continues to be very positive with 10 stocks advancing to 5 declining.

At the close of trading, there were 10 stocks with bids above the last selling price while there was 1 with the offer below the last selling price.

Friday, 24th May 2013  | Gains from National Commercial Bank up $1.16, Carreras up $1, Pan Jamaican Investment Trust up 99 cents and JMMB up 30 cents were strong enough to overcome the $1.54 decline in Jamaica Producers, 33 cents fall in the price of Sagicor Life and $1.13 in Scotia Group to help the main indices post positive gains on Friday.

Junior market | The junior market saw AMG Packaging climbing 50 cents to $4.50 a new 52 weeks high with 58,512 shares trading, Cargo Handlers picked up 17 cents in trading 10,000 units. Lasco Distributor gained 29 cents. The stock traded only traded 3,080 shares but the bid closed above the last selling price with 55,344 units on the bid, at the end of trading. Lasco Financial traded at an all time high of $8.25 up 14 cents on the day. New junior market listed Caribbean Creams traded 650,473 units to close at $1.09 having traded as high as $1.12 on the day. Grace was one of three stocks that traded at 52 weeks high.

Level of trade | Investors poured $20 million into 19 stocks with 1.6 million units changing hands, on a day when advancing stocks again outnumbered declining ones 9 to 6. All of the market’s indices continue to move up on Friday with the exception of the index for cross listed stocks and the US dollar index. In both cases, no stocks were traded.

Indices gain | The all Jamaica composite gained 2,023 points for the week or just over twice the gains of the prior week closing at 86,596.66 points. The junior market gained 15 points less than the 24 points picked up in the previous week, to close at 667.61 points.

Bids above last price | 9 stocks closed with bids that were higher than the last traded price and none closed with offers that were less than the last traded price, an indication that price gains are likely to continue into the coming week.

Stocks to watch | Stocks to watch this coming week include Scotia Group that reported better 6 months results than last year’s half year profit. Others to watch are Grace Kennedy, Blue Power, Lasco Financial, Desnoes & Geddes and JMMB and Sagicor Life.

JSE flashes a strong bull signal  | When the Jamaica stock market closed there were 12 stocks which had bids higher than the last selling price with no offers below the last selling price, a strong bull signal. Additionally 3 stocks traded at 52 weeks high and the advance/decline ratio was 3 to 1 with 13 stocks gaining and 4 down.

The all Jamaica index closed up 1,025 points ending the day at 86,150 and the main market index was up 582 points closing at 86,275.28.  The all Jamaica index is just below the February 6th level of 87,430 points. The most telling bullish sign is that the market index has decisively broken through the upper resistance level of the major downward slopping channel that goes back to 2004. There is one short-term resistance level to break through and this should happen in a day or two as the all Jamaica index is just touching that line. With the positive number of stocks that can’t get orders filled at current levels, the break will happen soon.

Newly listed Caribbean Cream traded as high as $1.20 but closed at $1.1 as over 861,000 shares traded. The offer closed at $1.10 with a bid of $1.07. Carreras closed up $2.48 trading over 86,000 units to close at $60. D&G was up 30 cents closing at $4.90 on very small volume. Grace gained 50 cents closing at $60.50 with only 2,000 shares trading. Junior Market Honey Bun lost 50 cents closing at $3.50 but only 1,000 shares changed hands. Lasco Manufacturing posted a $1.19 gain trading at $12.50 with just 6,000 of the stock traded. Pan Jam lost $3.59 to close down at $54.01 and 11,619 shares traded. Scotia group gained $1.39 closing at $$21.60 and Scotia Investments is up $3 to close at $26.50 with 246,800 units by one buy order on the bid at the last selling price.

Trading took place in 2,700,407 shares with a value of $20,978,749.

Pan Jamaica Investment Trust stock jumped $4.08 today to close at $57.60 back to the level it traded at prior to the NDX debt exchange of Government of Jamaica bonds in February this year. Pan Jamaican traded 75,651 units valued at $44.1 million. Grace Kennedy followed up with a gain of $1.75 with the stock getting back to its recent high of $60 while trading just 5,861 shares.

The Jamaican stock market put in a splendid performance today with 27 stocks trading valued $112,141,197 as 21.8 million shares changed hands. Sagicor Investments, accounted for 5.378 million units with a value of $83.55 million, all of the shares were sold and bought within Pan Caribbean brokerage house. Consolidated Bakeries traded over 12.3 million units worth $11.94 million. NCB Capital markets bought 12.11 million units at 90 cents for clients. Mayberry Investments traded 2.068 million units valued at $4.18 million on a day when the number of advancing stocks were in excess of declining ones, almost 3 to 1 as 15 advanced versus 6 declining.

At the end of trading, 8 stocks closed the day with bids higher than the last selling price. There were none with offers lower than the last sale price. One stock made 52-week high as Caribbean Cream, the new listing on the junior market, gained 14 cents to close at $1.15 up 15 percent on the IPO price with 60,000 units trading today. At the end of trading, there were more than 400,000 units on the bid between 94 cents and $1.06 and 265,000 on offer at $1.15 to $1.20.

Other stocks that had noticeable price movements were, Access Financial down 50 cents to $7.50, Blue Power off 55 cents to $6.05, Carreras down 38 cents to $57.52. JMMB climbed 45 cents to $7.50, NCBJ up 35 cents to close at $18.89 as 130,191 shares traded having traded as high as $19. Seprod shed 48 cents and closed at $14.52 on very small volume of 1,500 units.

At the end of trade, the main market index put on 297.88 points closing at 85,693.25 and the All Jamaica Composite closed over the 85,000 mark the first time since early February when it closed at 85,325, today it closed at 85,125. The main market index closed at the highest point today, since it closed at 85,693 on March 6^th this year.

The positive advance decline ratio coupled with the number of stocks with bids above last selling price are two factors that say this market is heading higher.

Advancing stocks out-do declining ones again | Trading picked up today as 4,114,189 units valued at over $67,585,621 were traded. National Commercial Bank 1,037,700 units valued at $19.6 million, Pan Jam traded 400,000 units at a value of $421.4 million, Carreras traded 220,989 units valued at $12.667 million, Dolphin Cove  with 816,710 units amounting to $6.6 million, Lasco Financial Services chipped in with 376,000 units valued at $3 million and General Accident Insurance Company with 505,500 units with value of $900,000. The movement and demand for the Lasco Financial shares comes against the background of earnings that are expected to be much higher than last year and should be released late this week or early next.

Major price movements were Grace falling $1.75 to $58.25, Kingston Wharves up 35 cents to close at a 52 weeks high of $7, Lasco Financial up 30 cents to $8.10 a 52 weeks high, NCB losing 44 cents to $18.55 and Scotia Investments down 50 cents to $23.50.

There was a positive advance/decline ratio of 12 to 5 thus maintaining the mildly bullish trend seen in the last 2 weeks. Supply of stocks at current price levels for the more attractive stocks are proving harder to come by suggesting that buyers will need to up their bid prices if they are to get the quantities they want. The number of stocks with bids above their last sale continue to show up in the market, an indication that sellers not prepared to sell as low as the last selling prices.

The JSE indices moved up moderately with two reflecting no change as no stocks associated with them traded.

Bullish signs are present | The Jamaica stock market registered gains in the main market index as First Caribbean International Bank gained $1.50 to close at $103 while trading just 2,537 shares. The All Jamaica Composite index fell, however, in spite of a positive advance decline ratio. Trading in the market was characterised by heavy cross trading carried out primarily by MVL Stockbrokers. The cross trades helped the volume reach 10.7 million units with a value of $93.9 million.

Two stocks reached 52 weeks high in trading while there was demand for stocks with prices above the last selling price that went unfilled at the end of trading. Blue Power reached $6 up 15 cents with a volume of 913,000 units traded by Mayberry which they bought for their own account. At the end of trading, they had a bid for 200,000 at $6. Kingston Properties traded more than 2 million shares and gained 51 cents to close at $4.51, NCB gained 28 cents to close at $18.50 with 215,300 shares trading. Scotia Investments in its up- today-down-tomorrow shed $3 in trading 452,185 shares with most being a cross and closed at $23.50.

At the close, the junior market looked very bullish as there is a general standoff between buyers and sellers with bids and offers being very wide.