Seprod shares jumped $3.75 on Tuesday.
Trading picked up on the main market stocks of the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Tuesday over Monday’s low level and the market indices made strong gains, continuing the recovery from last week’s steep fall and adding to Monday’s gains.
At the close the All Jamaica Composite Index advanced 4,308.59 points to close at 288,621.38, the JSE Market Index gained 3,925.61 points to 262,966.73 while the JSE US dollar market index inched higher by just 0.47 points to 191.75.
At the close of trading, 25 securities changed hands in the main market with 3 trading in the US dollar market, leading to 9 stocks advancing and 11 declining. The main market ended with 5,755,768 units valued at $88,334,159 changing hands compared to 4,567,079 units valued at $32,966,262 at the close on Monday. Trading in the US dollar market accounted for 84,612 units valued at US$47,715 bringing the total of all trades to J$94,584,782.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading in the main and US dollar markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading shows a fairly strong at 8 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and none with a lower offer.
The main market ended trading with an average of 230,231 units for an average of $3,533,366 for each security traded compared to an average of 182,683 units valued at $1,318,651. The average volume and value for the month to date ended at $340,965 units with an average value of $3,892,714 compared with an average of 352,182 units with an average value of $3,275,641 on the previous trading day. The average volume and value for August ended at 184,094 units with an average value of $4,336,090.
At the close Carreras rose to a new 52 weeks’ high of $11.50 after the 10 to 1 stock took effect on the market on Monday and Seprod jumped $3.75 to $33 while Scotia Group closed at $51.
The rate the public paid for the US dollar at, eased on Monday to JS$131.09 down from J$131.31 on Friday, as dealers sold US$38.44 million compared to US$52.68 million on Friday. 
Bank of Jamaica auctioned off US$20 million on Wednesday and the amount seems to have swollen foreign exchange trading volumes on Thursday, with dealers buying the equivalent of US$70.98 million and selling US$70.8 million. 
Dealers in the Jamaican foreign exchange market bought the equivalent of US$19.4 million more foreign exchange on Wednesday than they sold but the rate to buy the US dollar by the public, rose to an average of J$130.51 trading US$27.84 million from J$130.14 for US$21.70 million on Tuesday. 
At the end of trading on Tuesday, the rate to buy the US dollar by the public, rose to an average of J$130.14 from J$129.93 previously while dealers bought the US currency at an average of J$128.69 versus J$128.88 on Monday. 
Trading in the Jamaican foreign exchange market rose on Monday over Friday’s levels, resulting in US$57.88 of purchases by dealers of all currencies and outflows of US$34.37 million. 
The junior market on the other hand raced ahead of the main market earlier this year and is struggling currently as a number of the stocks were pushed to values well ahead of the rest of the market and have been undergoing downward adjustment. The other factor is that many investors are not looking ahead as to what earnings could be. The recent trading of 
Inflows of finds into the system for the first week of September fell to just US$171 million from US$270 million in the first week of August while outflows stood at US$145 million versus US$213 million for the same period. 
Trading in the Jamaican foreign exchange market remained elevated on Wednesday, resulted in US$50.57 of purchases by dealers of all currencies and outflows of US$42.83 million.
Minority deserves better
SOS directors released June’s quarterly results even though the JSE rules require the first report to be relased for the September quarter.
The investing public seems not to be treated with the respect it deserves. It appears that many companies thing of investors last, not recognizing that they are shareholders just like the majority owners.
The last persons seen are the first to be remembered and is equivalent to out of sight out of mind. That seems to be the case with shareholders in the Caribbean. Newly listed Stationery & Office Supplies release of the June quarterly report although not required by the Jamaica Stock Exchange is an example of good corporate governance and is to be applauded.
In Trinidad for example, there is little liquidity in that market and the directors refuse to do anything about it. In Jamaica many companies tend to stick with the minimum regulations of the stock exchange, even when the recent examples in Jamaica say how important it is to ensure that there is adequate liquidity in the market.
The current regulation for listings in Jamaica, is for new listed companies to file their first quarterly report in the quarter ending after listing. The rule is inadequate to protect investors. Information is critical for the capital market to function properly, as such investors should not have to wait more than two quarters to get a quarterly report. In 2016, there was the very poor decision by Wentworth Graham the then head of the regulatory arm of the Jamaica Stock Exchange to permit 1834 Investments to wrongly withhold the December quarterly report from the public. This was based on improper interpretation of the rules relating to the release of financial information.
Main Event release their first report in June after their January IPO.
Earlier this year Main Event issued their IPO and included interim results to September 2016, with the year end of October. The IPO was in January but it was not until June that shareholders had information on the out turn of the operations for 2016 as well as for the first quarter this year. As it turned out, profit of $60 million at the 11 month period melted down to $56.5 million for the full year. The audited report was only signed on the June 5, more than 7 months after the year end while the first quarter results were never released but the second quarter to April was released within the deadline of June 15.
The management of Stationery & Office Supplies may have had a lot to shout about with pretax profit jumping 146 percent to $20.3 million for the June quarter this year and hence the release of the results to Jamaica Stock Exchange in less than a month of listing on the Junior Market.
Under the stock exchange rules it need not have put out the six months report having been listed in August. Some persons may see it as self interest in the release, but there is no evidence of that. The release provides the investing public with pertinent information in a timely manner, on which they can make their investment decisions. The hope is that the Jamaica Stock Exchange rules will be strengthened quickly to ensure that pertinent information is release on a timely basis to the public.