Juniors slip first trading day for 2017

The junior market index slipped at the close on the first trading day of the new year on very moderate volume. At the end of trading the market index declined by 12.29 points to end at 2,581.42.
At the close, the prices of 2 stocks rose, 5 declined with 12 securities trading, compared to 16 trading on Friday. Volume of stocks traded dropped on Friday by 82 percent, from Friday’s level, ending with 294,809 units changing hands, valued at $1,529,067, down by 82 percent from $8,675,126 on Friday.
Market activities ended with 5 securities closing with bids higher than their last selling prices and one ending with a lower offer.
An average of 24,567 units with an average value of $127,422 traded, compared to 102,038 units with an average value of $542,195 on the preceding trading day. The average for December is 131,147 units, at an average of $672,488.
At the close of trading, Cargo Handlers closed at $18.50 with 1,379 units changing hands, Caribbean Cream had 19,700 units exchanged for 20 cents less than on Friday to end at $7.30. Caribbean Producers traded 45,331 shares to close at $3.30, Honey Bun had 2,735 shares changing hands to close at $5.68 after falling 17 cents. Iron Rock Insurance climbed 40 cents in trading 564,394 shares to end at $4, Jamaican Teas lost 60 cents to end at $4.25 with 2,500 shares being exchanged. Key Insurance gained 20 cents to end at $2.80 with 55,524 units changing hands, KLE Group closed with 7,000 shares trading at $1.95. Lasco Distributors ended with 96,756 units trading with a fall of 4 cents to $7.01, Lasco Financial rose 8 cents with 6,294 shares changing hands, to end at $3.19, Lasco Manufacturing fell 10 cents and ended at $4.90, after 20,440 units switched hands, tTech traded 20,150 units at $5.30 and Eppley 9.5% preference share traded 17,000 units at $6.18.