Buying and selling of foreign currencies were almost evenly matched on Friday, unlike trading earlier in the week, when for 3 days sales to the public were much more than the amount bought by dealers. Purchases of all currencies by dealers, translated to US$29,168,659 compared with the US$30,400,269, on Thursday and selling amounted the equivalent of US$30,094,413 versus US$38,333,066 sold on Thursday.
In US dollar trading, dealers bought US$25,360,133 compared to US$26,474,381 on Thursday. The buying rate for the US dollar fell 5 cents to $115.27 and US$27,840,423 was sold versus US$36,376,817 on Thursday, the selling rate remained at $115.80. The Canadian dollar buying rate dropped 11 cents to $90.54 with dealers buying C$1,130,911, and selling C$505,081, at an average rate that climbed 11 cents, to $92.60. The rate for buying the British Pound gained 74 cents to $174.95 for the purchase of £1,830,887, while £917,400 was sold, at an average rate of $176.54, a rise of 76 cents. At the end of trading it took J$132.37 to purchase the Euro, 11 cents higher than on Thursday, according to data from Bank of Jamaica, while dealers purchased the European common currency at J$129.84 for an increase of 18 cents from Thursday. Other currencies bought, amounted to the equivalent of US$141,638 while the equivalent of US$451,559, was sold.
Highs & Lows| The highest buying rate for the US dollar, the lowest buying and the highest selling rates were unchanged at $115.90, $94.36 and $120.91 respectively. The lowest selling rate rose $17.14 to $111.50. The highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar eased by $1.10 to $92.50, the lowest buying rate fell 21 cents to $73.04. The highest selling rate dropped $20.65 to $95 and the lowest selling rate is down 25 cents to $88. The highest buying rate for the British Pound, gained 20 cents to $176.70. The lowest buying rate gained 67 cents to $141.56, the highest selling rate fell 52 cents to $181.11 and the lowest selling rate increased 80 cents to $170.55.
J$ holds against US, down on Pound
Massy drops 4.5% in 2 days
Massy Holdings drops sharply on Thursday again.
At the close of the market, the Composite Index declined by 2.61 points to close at 1,146.08, the All T&T Index fell by 2.70 points to close at 1,978.17 and the Cross Listed Index lost 0.33 points to close at 41.11.
Gains| Trinidad Cement traded 14,847 shares to close at $2.33.
Declines| The stocks declining at the end of trading are, First Citizens Bank with 340 shares trading closed at $35.95 down 5 cents, Massy Holdings trading 7,990 shares, closed with a lost $1.26 on top of the $1.75 lost on Wednesday to close at $63.99 for a new 52 weeks’ low. National Commercial Bank lost 3 cents to $1.16 as 15,000 units changed hands, Sagicor Financial traded 27,485 units to lose 15 cents at $5.20, a new 52 weeks’ low.
Firm Trades| Stocks closing with prices unchanged at the end of trading are, ANSA McAl trading 1,015 units and closed at $66.77, Clico Investment Fund trading 117,014 shares with a value of $2,660,116 to end at $22.75. Grace Kennedy ended at $3.65 while trading 3,975 shares, Guardian Holdings ended trading with 5,804 units trading at $13.20, Guardian Media closed trading at $19.75 while 3,260 shares were traded, Jamaica Money Market Brokers traded 7,500 units at 40 cents. National Flour traded 32,750 shares and closed at $1.45, One Caribbean Media traded 1,071 units at $23.95 and Scotiabank traded 800 shares to close at $62, LJ Williams B share ended trading in 100 units at 99 cents and the company’s A share traded 500 units at 29 cents.IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator is reflecting a negative reading and now shows 4 stocks with the bid higher than their last selling prices and 5 stocks with offers that are lower.
Dealers sold US$18m over buying
There was more selling of foreign currencies than buying by dealers on Wednesday, similar to Tuesday’s trading. Purchases of all currencies by dealers, translated to US$33,677,040 compared with the US$32,436,213, on Tuesday and selling amounted the equivalent of US$52,309,853 versus US$44,560,563 sold on Tuesday.
In US dollar trading, dealers bought US$29,144,721 compared to US$28,223,145 on Tuesday. The buying rate for the US dollar fell 3 cents to $115.22 and US$48,604,969 was sold versus US$42,457,660 on Tuesday, the selling rate remained at $115.77. The Canadian dollar buying rate rose $1.58 to $91.26 with dealers buying C$2,862,479, and selling C$2,525,837, at an average rate that climbed 42 cents, to $92.04. The rate for buying the British Pound gained 35 cents to $173.05 for the purchase of £1,053,193, while £719,957 was sold, at an average rate of $174.53, a rise of 56 cents. At the end of trading it took J$132.53 to purchase the Euro, $1.20 higher than on Tuesday, according to data from Bank of Jamaica, while dealers purchased the European common currency at J$129.97 for an increase of $1.07 over Tuesday. Other currencies bought, amounted to the equivalent of US$683,280 while the equivalent of US$611,448, was sold.
Highs & Lows| The highest buying rate for the US dollar, rose 10 cents to $116. The lowest buying and the highest selling rates were unchanged at $94.36 and $120.91 respectively. The lowest selling rate climbed $18.64 to $113. The highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar climbed $1.30 cents to $94, the lowest buying rate rose 58 cents to $72.96. The highest selling rate put on $1.13 to $95.61 and the lowest selling rate is up 40 cents to $87.90. The highest buying rate for the British Pound, gained $1.34 to $176.02. The lowest buying rate gained 87 cents to $139.73, the highest selling rate rose 96 cents to $179.97 and the lowest selling rate increased $1.05 to $168.35.
Moderate JSE trading Wednesday
Wednesday’s activity on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, resulted in the prices of 6 stocks rising 5 declining as just 19 securities changed hands, ending in only 836,056 units trading, valued at a mere $4,310,061, in all market segments.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index lost a mere 0.62 points to 77,527.63, the JSE All Jamaican Composite index fell 0.68 points to close at 85,397.80 and the JSE combined index gained 43.55 points to close at 79,471.25.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows 8 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and only 1 with the offer lower.
Gains| Only 2 stocks closed higher at the end of trading in the main market on Wednesday with Sagicor Real Estate Fund closing with 2,500 shares trading, 11 cents up to $6.85 and Kingston Wharves ending with 3,300 units trading 40 cents higher to $6.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in the last traded prices are, Carreras closing with 29,715 shares at $41, after trading as high as $42. Ciboney had 245,980 units changing hands at 7 cents, Grace Kennedy ended with 2,483 shares changing hands at $61.90 and Proven Investments ended with 2,780 shares trading at 21 US cents.
Declines| The last traded prices of stocks with losses at the end of trading in the main market are, Caribbean Cement closing trading with 23,893 shares, ending lower by 10 cents to $2.30, Desnoes & Geddes closing with 53,186 shares changing hands, 10 cents down to $4.80. National Commercial Bank concluding trading with only 5,632 shares changing hands to end 9 cents lower at $20.41, Sagicor Group finished with only 280 units changing hands, losing 25 cents to $10.25 and Scotia Group in trading 76,537 units closed at 23 cents lower to $20.02.
Preference| Proven Investments 8% preference share traded 95,651 units at $5.
NCB dominates as market rises again
NCB Financial dropped $8 on Friday.
Tuesday’s activity on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, resulted in the prices of 9 stocks rising 7 declining as 27 securities changed hands, ending in 11,536,610 units trading, valued at $173,915,246, in all market segments.
National Commercial Bank that dominated trading on Monday with 27,173,167 units, was again the lead trade on Tuesday, with 7,970,682 shares valued at $163,393,196. The majority of shares traded was done by way of a cross executed by Sagicor Investments.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index gained 326.79 points to 77,528.25, the JSE All Jamaican Composite index rose 365.36 points to close at a 85,398.48 and the JSE combined index gained 256.46 points to close at 79,427.70.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows 8 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 3 stocks with offers that were lower.
Gains| Stocks gaining with last traded prices, at the end of trading in the main market are, Jamaica Money Market Brokers trading 22,500 ordinary shares and put on 23 cents to $7, National Commercial Bank traded 7,970,682 shares to end with an increase of 30 cents to a 52 weeks’ high of $20.50. Sagicor Investments bought and sold 7,927,299 units of the amount traded, in two lots. Sagicor Group traded 14,298 shares while gaining 50 cents to $10.50. The Sagicor Real Estate Fund closed with 20,775 shares changing hands as the price gained 4 cents to $6.74, Scotia Group traded 31,119 units and put on 20 cents to $20.25 and Supreme Ventures put in 94,445 shares to end with an increase of 10 cents to $2.10.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in the last traded prices are, Berger Paints finishing with 3,039 units changing hands at $1.56, Carreras in trading 98,550 shares closed at $41, Desnoes & Geddes closed with 30,000 shares trading at $4.90. Gleaner had 31,693 units trading at 81 cents, Jamaica Broilers closed with 123,928 units at $4, Jamaica Producers ended with 955 shares changing hands at $17. Proven Investments finished with 9,646 units traded at 21 US cents, Radio Jamaica ended with 4,657 units trading at $1.10 and Seprod finished had 14,348 shares changing hands at $11.90.
Cable & Wireless dropped 20% to 40 cents on Tuesday
Declines| The last traded prices of stocks with losses at the end of trading in the main market are, Cable & Wireless ending with 2,013,234 units trading, losing 10 cents to 40 cents as investors reacted negatively to news that the company has to pay Digicel $1.5 billion for interconnection charges. Grace Kennedy had transactions in 9,900 shares to close lower by 10 cents at $61.90, Pan Jamaican Investment closed with 3,816 shares changing hands, 50 cents down at $52 and Scotia Investments in concluding trading in 854 shares lost 4 cents to $22.51.
Preference| Proven Investments 8% preference share closed with 247,500 units trading at $5.
J$ falls against Pound & Canadian
There was more selling of foreign currencies than buying by dealers on Tuesday, reversing the trend of more buying than selling on Friday last and on Monday. Purchases of all currencies by dealers, translated to US$32,436,213 compared with the US$44,621,999, on Monday and selling amounted the equivalent of US$44,560,563 versus US$39,191,588 sold on Monday.
In US dollar trading, dealers bought US$28,223,145 compared to US$41,625,677 on Monday. The buying rate for the US dollar fell 11 cents to $115.25 and US$42,457,660 was sold versus US$37,401,869 on Monday, the selling rate fell 1 cent to $115.77. The Canadian dollar buying rate rose 67 cents to $89.68 with dealers buying C$1,244,395, and selling C$732,799, at an average rate that climbed 56 cents, to $91.62. The rate for buying the British Pound gained $1.47 to $172.70 for the purchase of £2,063,515, while £874,757 was sold, at an average rate of $173.97, after rising 20 cents. At the end of trading it took J$131.33 to purchase the Euro, 64 cents higher than on Monday, according to data from Bank of Jamaica, while dealers purchased the European common currency at J$128.89 for an increase of 48 cents over Monday. Other currencies bought, amounted to the equivalent of US$152,537 while the equivalent of US$208,402, was sold.
Highs & Lows| The highest buying rate for the US dollar, fell 10 cents to $115.90. The lowest buying and the highest selling rates were unchanged at $94.36 and $120.91 respectively. The lowest selling rate dropped $1.86 to $94.36. The highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar fell 30 cents to $92.70, the lowest buying rate rose 50 cents to $72.38. The highest selling rate put on 43 cents to $94.48 and the lowest selling rate is up 90 cents to $87.50. The highest buying rate for the British Pound, gained 68 cents to $174.68. The lowest buying rate eased 58 cents to $138.86, the highest selling rate lost 75 cents to $179.01 and the lowest selling rate dropped 40 cents to $167.30.
Junior market falters, 3 stocks rise 3 fall
Activity on the Junior Market closed with 7 securities trading and ending with 790,671 units valued at $998,335 changing hands. The JSE Junior Market Index declined 5.48 points to close at 698.61, with the price of 3 stocks advancing and 3 declining.
At the close of the market, there were 4 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and none had offers that were lower. The junior market ended with 4 securities closing with no bids to buy and 8 securities that had no stocks being offered for sale.
Stocks trading in the junior market are, Jamaican Teas traded 117,665 units, gained of 4 cents to close at $2.55, Lasco Distributors traded 46,000 shares and closed with 1 cent gain at $1.41, Lasco Financial stock gained a cent with 55,000 shares, to end at $1.06, Lasco Manufacturing with 465,462 shares changing hands closed at $1.20.
Blue Power closed with 2,544 units trading, the price slipped 11 cents $6.40, Caribbean Producers in closing with 94,000 shares trading lost 10 cents at $2.20 and General Accident ended with 10,000 shares changing hands 15 cents lower at $1.65.
TTSE up but negative bias remains
NCB is in demand in Trinidad as stock sets to rise further
At the close of the market, the Composite Index rose 0.25 points to close at 1,151.01, the All T&T Index rose by 0.91 points to close at 1,984.60 and the Cross Listed Index increased by 0.19 points to close at 41.56.
Gains| Stocks increasing in price at the close are, Clico Investment Fund traded 168,480 shares valued at $3,832,536 and gained 9 cents to end at $22.74, National Commercial Bank with 100,000 shares changing hands for a value of $119,000, closed 3 cents higher, at $1.19, a new 52 weeks’ high. NCB closed with the bid at $1.22 (J$22) to buy 100,000 units but there were no stocks on offer at the close. Trinidad Cement contributed 39,350 shares to gain 4 cents to $2.30 and Unilever Caribbean stock price increased by 15 cents to end at $65.16, for a new 52 weeks’ high, while trading 250 units.
Declines| The stocks declining at the end of trading are, Angostura Holdings with 1,972 shares trading and closed 4 cents lower at $15.90, Grace Kennedy traded just 509 units at $3.65 while losing 2 cents and Massy Holdings traded 175 shares to close with a loss of 50 cents down to $67.
Firm Trades| Stocks closing with prices unchanged at the end of trading are, First Citizens Bank with a volume of 87,000 shares trading for $3,132,000 at $36, Guardian Holdings added 2,000 shares at $13.20. Jamaica Money Market Brokers had 299 shares changing hands at 40 cents, One Caribbean Media traded 1,000 units to close at $23.95, Point Lisas Industrial Port Development ended with 385 shares trading at $3.75 and Scotiabank traded 1,013 shares to close at $62.IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows 4 stocks with the bid higher than their last selling prices and 7 stocks with offers that were lower.
JSE up more gains ahead
Prices were mostly up in trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on the first trading day of February, in continuation of a pattern of rising prices being dominant from early October, last year. A number of market indicators continue to point to a strong rally ahead for local stocks. National Commercial Bank dominated trading with more than 27 million units trading as Mayberry Investments sold most of them and Scotia Investments bought most. Both brokers were acting on behalf of clients.
More stocks gained on Monday than declined, resulting from the prices of 9 stocks rising, 3 declining as 22 securities changed hands, ending in 27,680,503 units trading, valued at $563,375,725, in all market segments. Two stocks closed at new 52 weeks’ high.
strong> Main Market Indices| The JSE Market Index gained 662.29 points to 77,201.46, the JSE All Jamaican Composite index rose 740.46 points to close at 85,033.12 and the JSE combined index gained 758 points to close at 79,171.24.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows 7 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and only 2 with lower offers, including Montego Bay Ice Company that seldom trades.
Carreras closed at a new 52 weeks’ high of $41 on Monday. Poised to go higher.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in the last traded prices are, Cable & Wireless closed with 10,000 units trading at 50 cents, Gleaner concluding trading with 416 shares changing hands at 81 cents, Grace Kennedy finished with 3,533 shares trading at $62, Proven Investments in trading 2,420 shares closed at 21 US cents, Sagicor Group closed with 62,506 shares trading at $10, Sagicor Real Estate Fund had 66,350 units trading at $6.70 and Scotia Group closed with 131,483 shares changing hands at $20.05.
Declines| Scotia Investments was the sole stock in the main market to end with a loss while 5,000 shares changed hands to close lower by 45 cents to $22.55 units.Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.50% preference share traded 300 units to close at $2 and Jamaica Money Market Brokers 8.75% preference share traded 5,000 units to end with an increase of 2 cents to $3.02.
J$ down on US & pound up on Canadian – Thursday
The selling rate for the Jamaican dollar increased on Thursday against the Pound and the US dollar but improved against the Canadian dollar. Purchases of all currencies by dealers, translated to US$52,659,123 compared with the US$32,242,695, on Wednesday and selling amounted the equivalent of US$48,382,955 versus US$31,020,751 sold on Wednesday.
In US dollar trading, dealers bought US$49,365,865 compared to US$27,070,796 on Wednesday. The buying rate for the US dollar rose 38 cents to $115.56 and US$44,040,735 was sold versus US$28,365,728 on Wednesday, with the selling rate climbing 2 cents to $115.81. The Canadian dollar buying rate fell 61 cents to $90.50 with dealers buying C$1,116,802, and selling C$3,636,641, at an average rate that rose 36 cents, to $93.55. The rate for buying the British Pound dropped $1.18 to $172.10 for the purchase of £955,128, while £387,733 was sold, the rate fell 80 cents to $174.61. At the end of trading it took J$131.32 to purchase the Euro, 67 cents lower than on Wednesday, according to data from Bank of Jamaica, while dealers purchased the European common currency at J$128.67 for a decline of $1.04 from Wednesday. Other currencies bought, amounted to the equivalent of US$996,171 while the equivalent of US$820,125, was sold.
Highs & Lows| The highest buying and the highest selling rates for the US dollar, were unchanged at $115.95 and $120.91 respectively. The lowest buying rate dropped $5.21 to $89.15 while the lowest selling rate leapt $20.75 to $113. The highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar jumped $3.65 to $96.95, the lowest buying rate inched up 9 cents to $73.50. The highest selling rate rose $3.92 to $98.92 and the lowest selling rate dropped $1.30 to $89. The highest buying rate for the British Pound, dipped $1.60 to $175.40. The lowest buying rate rose $1.49 to $140.60, the highest selling rate fell 39 cents to $179.33 and the lowest selling rate dived $2.90 to $168.70.