First Citizens closed at a 52 weeks’ high on TTSE on Monday
The Composite Index advanced 1.43 points to close at 1,149.45, the All T&T Index gained 2.82 points to close at 1,814.25 and the Cross Listed Index is unchanged at 64.49.
IC bid-offer Indicator| The Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator ended with 9 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 5 with offers that were lower.
Gains| First Citizens gained 50 cents in trading 3,050 units, to end at a 52 week’s high of $35.50, Guardian Holdings closed with 1,585 shares changing hands and gained 2 cents to end at $15.54. National Flour ended with 1,148 shares changing hands with a rise of 1 cent to close at $2.31 and Trinidad Cement gained 5 cents to end at $3.05 with 2,709 shares changing hands.
Losses| Massy Holdings closed with 275 shares changing hands with the loss of 1 cent at $55.99, Prestige Holdings traded 1,091 shares and fell 10 cents to close at $10.80 and L.J. Williams B share traded 33,700 units but lost 10 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ low of 84 cents.Firm Trades| Ansa McAl traded 66,323 units valued at value of $4,112,021 to close at $62, Clico Investment Fund advanced by 10 cents to end at $22.65 with 4,000 shares trading, Trinidad and Tobago NGL closed with 9,986 shares changing hands at $23.75.
In a release by directors accompanying the financials, the company stated that “Administrative and other costs rose by approximately $5.2 million due to listing on the market which accounted for $2.5 million while salaries adjustments accounted for $2.7 million of the increase. Part of the increase in salaries is directly tied to the increased sales that took place.”
Trading picked up subsequently with more securities changing hands with increased volumes. Elsewhere, Access Financial Services Unsecured Variable Rate Note Due 2020 was listed on the Exchange on Monday. 
Legislation is ready to come to parliament to make the junior market tax incentive retroactive to April 1, this year to restore the incentive to its original benefits of 100 percent tax-free status for 5 years and 50 percent of the regular tax for the second 5 years, Minister of Finance, 
Allegheny Petroleum and junior market listed company, 
While profit grew in the year, segment results show mix out turn for each division. For 2016, Chemicals grew revenues by 12 percent and gross profit by 19 percent over 2015, for Construction and Adhesives, for the same periods, revenues grew by 59 percent and gross profit by just 6 percent. Manufacturing sales fell by 16 percent with profits remaining unchanged, while Transport enjoyed a 16 percent growth in sales leading to a 61 percent rise in profit and Lubricants sales climbed 403 percent with profits jumping 127 percent. Graham indicated to IC Insider that the fall in manufacturing sales is due to a customer reorganising their business. The data suggests that the new lubricant plant is likely to be the area of growth for 
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading showed 12 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 3 with lower offers.
National Commercial Bank had 319,018 units changing hands, to close at $42 after falling 2 cents. Pan Jamaican Investments lost 20 cents and closed at $25.30 after trading 4,659 shares, Radio Jamaica rose 1 cent to close at $1.57 after 2,321 shares changed hands, Sagicor Group rose 45 cents with 45,612 shares changing hands at $21.45, Sagicor Real Estate Fund traded 15,000 shares but fell 22 cents to close at $10. Scotia Group traded 356,705 shares to end at $27.10 after dropping sharply by $2.95, Supreme Ventures loss 10 cents to $4.80 with 174,506 shares changing hands, JMMB Group 7.50% preference share traded 780,800 units at $1.10 and Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.25% preference share traded 22,063 units at $2.40.
At the close of trading, Caribbean Cream lost 70 cents with 41,750 shares changing hands, to close at $7.30, Caribbean Flavours traded 3,993 units to close with a loss of 48 cents at $6.52. Caribbean Producers fell 5 cents, in trading 30,015 units at $3.45, Consolidated Bakeries traded 6,262 units, to end at $2.55, General Accident had 30,000 shares changing hands to close 1 cent lower, at $2.08. Honey Bun had 10,050 shares changing hands with a gain of 25 cents, to close at $5.70, Jamaican Teas traded 25,618 units and rose by 50 cents to end at $4. 
Jetcon Corporation traded 56,590 shares at $2.69, Knutsford Express closed with 6,700 units changing hands at $19.25 after rising by 25 cents. Lasco Distributors ended with 592,109 shares changing hands at $7, Lasco Financial traded 26,419 units and gained 1 cent to close at $3.26, Lasco Manufacturing closed at $4.95 with 61,972 shares trading, but lost 5 cents. Medical Disposables traded 83,038 shares to close at $3 and Derrimon Trading preference share, ended with 8,365 units changing hands at $2.10.
Trading on the Trinidad and Tobago stock market continue to remain low keyed and when it closed on Friday, only 7 securities changed hands resulting in a mere 92,719 shares valued at $2,730,555 being traded as recent buying interest have subsided. At the close, 2 stocks rose, 3 declined and 3 remained unchanged, leading marginal changes in all the market indices. Two stocks closed at 52 weeks’ lows. 
Losses| National Commercial Bank fell 10 cents in trading 25,000 shares to close at $2.65 and Unilever Caribbean traded 3,705 shares and fell 7 cents to close at a 52 weeks’ low of $64.40.
Jamaica’s foreign exchange dealers bought US$9.6 million more than the amount sold on Friday, putting the surplus bought since the end of June to US$149 million, with the rate of the Jamaican dollar falling marginally against the United States currency. 
The Canadian dollar buying rate dropped $1.81 to end at $94.44, with dealers buying C$1,060,908 and selling C$950,186 at an average rate that fell 18 cents to $97.05. The average rate for buying the British Pound climbed $1.22 to $162.38 for the purchase of £1,861,633, while £305,503 was sold to end at a rate of $163.79, for a fall of 83 cents.
Highs & Lows| Notable changes to the highest and lowest traded rates, for the Jamaican dollar in the foreign exchange market on Friday, include a drop of $19.35 in the lowest buying rate of the US dollar to $103.45, a fall of 70 cents in the highest buying rate of Canadian Dollar to close at $97.80, a dive of $6.08 in the lowest selling rate to end at $77.60. Trading in the British Pound resulted in a jump of $3 in the highest buying rate to $167 and a rise of $2.30 in the lowest selling rate to close of $158.
