This Junior market chart is not looking all that good recently but should find support sooner than later.
Trading activities continue to pressure the Junior Market Index leading to a decline of 34.02 points to close at 2,688.73 and a 20 percent fall in the overall market since peaking in May. On Friday the prices of 6 securities advanced, 10 declined and 8 remained unchanged.
The market gained 30.1 percent for 2017 on May 24, this year, but is now just ahead of the December close by a mere 3.7 percent with Friday’s fall. A major contributor to the decline from the peak is the fall in the prices of Lasco Distributors that is heavily weighted in the index along with Lasco Manufacturing. Lasco Distributors traded at $7.20 in late May and is now at $4.40 with the award for their case against Pfizer coming in far below what the market expected and Manufacturing at $5.20 and is now at $3.50, with sales and profit stagnated. The fall has been mollified by gains in newly listed Express Catering and Stationery and Office Supplies.
The number of Junior Market securities trading on Friday, jumped to 24, from just 13 changing hands on Thursday, resulting in an exchange of 1,300,855 units valued at $5,472,573 compared to 1,784,331 units valued at $8,037,129 on Thursday.
Trading ended with an average of 54,202 units for an average of $228,024 in contrast to 137,256 units for an average of $618,241 on Thursday. In contrast, November closed with average of 107,477 units valued at $545,989 for each security traded.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading shows 3 stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and 5 with lower offers.
Fall in Lasco Distributors & Lasco Manufacturing main contributors to market fall.
At the close of the market, Access Financial closed at $34, with 2,203 shares, CAC 2000 finished with a loss of 30 cents at $6.20, with 1,200 shares, Caribbean Flavours settled with a loss of $1.30 at $11, with 3,000 shares, Caribbean Producers traded at $4.20, with 1,000 units, Consolidated Bakeries finished with a loss of 25 cents at $1.80, with 252,500 shares, C2W Music ended 1 cent higher at $0.50, with 100,000 stock units, Dolphin Cove finished trading at $17.50, with 26,550 shares. Express Catering ended with a loss of 20 cents at $4, with 136,755 stock units, Eppley concluded trading with a loss of 50 cents at $10, with 400 units, General Accident finished with a loss of 20 cents at $2.50, with 10,000 shares, Honey Bun settled 40 cents higher at $3.90, with 17,996 shares. Iron Rock settled at $2.80, with 3,886 shares, Jamaican Teas traded at $3.80, with 18,875 units, Jetcon Corporation finished trading with a loss of 15 cents at $4.35, with 4,600 shares, 
Knutsford Express closed 98 cents higher at $14.80, with 600 shares, Key Insurance ended 31 cents higher at $3.99, with 1,000 stock units. KLE Group concluded trading at $2.53, with 10,400 units, Lasco Distributors settled with a loss of 10 cents at $4.40, with 23,152 shares, Lasco Financial ended trading 10 cents higher at $5.15, with 349,824 stock units, Lasco Manufacturing traded with a loss of 40 cents at $3.50, with 45,500 units. Medical Disposables finished trading 10 cents higher at $5.05, with 1,200 shares, Main Event closed at $6, with 176,732 shares, Paramount Trading concluded trading with a loss of 1 cent at $3.09, with 32,705 units and Stationery and Office ended trading at $5.05, with 80,777 stock units.
Prices of securities trading for the day are those at which the last trade took place.
