Trading in the Jamaican foreign exchange market on Monday saw a continuation of relatively high volumes with dealers buying the equivalent of US$44,518,271 and selling US$47,139,125, in contrast with US$46,633,736 purchased and US$39,279,414 sold on Friday.
In US dollars trading, dealers bought US$40,700,061 compared to US$42,784,797 on Friday, with the buying rate for the US dollar declining 12 cents to $121.23. A total of US$44,798,976 was sold versus US$37,116,900 on Friday as the selling rate slipped 2 cents to $121.85. 
The Canadian dollar buying rate fell 45 cents to end at $87.17 with dealers buying C$1,351,796 and selling C$765,595, at an average rate that climbed 50 cents to $90.20. The rate for buying the British Pound rose 71 cents to $169.35 for the purchase of £1,901,755, while £1,068,937 was sold, with the rate rising $1.80 to $171.93. At the end of trading, the selling rate for Euro, climbed 91 cents to close at J$134.14, from Friday’s rate, according to data from Bank of Jamaica, while dealers purchased the European common currency at J$131.57 for a rise of 90 cents from Friday’s rate. The US dollar equivalent of other currencies traded, amounts to US$189,659 being bought, while US$265,153 was sold.
Highs & Lows| Notable changes to the highest and lowest rates the currencies traded at on Monday are, a jump of $1.90 in the highest buying rate for the Canadian dollar that ended at $93, the lowest selling rate climbed $3.10 to $86.20 and the highest selling rate for the British Pound gained $1.94 to $180.36 and the lowest selling rate jumped $2.50 to end at $164.50.
Buoyant FX trading on Monday
JSE majors fall on Monday
Jamaican stocks lost ground on Monday, as declining stocks overpowered advancing ones 19 to 10 fell as 44 changed hands, in all market segments. At the close 2 stocks traded at a 52 weeks’ intraday high with 19,358,874 units valued at $311,620,982 changed hands in all markets. The junior market accounted for 729,681 units changing hands, valued at $3,325,492.
The JSE Market Index fell 505.02 points to 155,242.80 the all Jamaica Composite Index lost 564.38 points to end at 172,448.89 and the JSE combined index dipped 339.27 points to close at 164,438.28.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading was 13 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 4 with lower offers.
At the end of the market activities, Barita Investments traded 9,000 units and lost 20 cents to end at $3.52, Berger Paints gained 37 cents while trading 13,159 shares at $4.37, Cable & Wireless put on 1 cent in closing at $1.51 with 281,758 units, Caribbean Cement dropped 39 cents to end at $23.11 with 122,871 shares trading. Carreras fell by 90 cents to close at $64.10, while trading 576,410 units, Gleaner had 154,500 shares trading with the loss of 1 cent at $2, Grace Kennedy ended with 11,320 shares trading to close at $83, Jamaica Broilers gained 36 cents after trading 444,293 units to close at $14.36, Jamaica Stock Exchange traded 6,330 shares to end at $23. 
JMMB Group had 401,491 units changing hands but lost 1 cent in closing at $10.40, Kingston Wharves had 14,069,404 shares trading with a loss of 9 cents at $11.30, National Commercial Bank had 2,112,047 shares changing hands to close at $41 but the price rose $1 by the close. 138 Student Living fell 13 cents in trading 8,584 shares at $5.67. Pan Jamaican Investments traded 20,000 units at $95. Sagicor Group closed with 7,522 shares changing hands at $23.55, Scotia Group had 13001 shares changing hands to close with a loss of $1.50 at $30.50, Scotia Investments dropped $3.45 with 252,400 units changing hands at $26.55 and Supreme Ventures closed at $5.25 with 107,124 units changing hands.
Premium for Jamaican stocks remains – TTSE
Grace Kennedy and Scotia Investments (SIJL) continue to trade in Trinidad at a huge premium to the prices in Jamaica on Monday although SIJL slipped at the end of trading. Trading activity ended on the Trinidad & Tobago Stock Exchange on Monday with 352,423 shares valued at $7,434,679 trading, with the market indices falling. The market ended with 10 active securities of which, 2 rose, 3 fell and 5 remained unchanged. One stock ended at 52 weeks’ low at the close.
The Composite Index lost 1.06 points to close at 1,165.96, the All T&T Index dropped 1.72 points to close at 1,890.87 and the Cross Listed Index declined 0.05 points to close at 58.45.
IC bid-offer Indicator| The Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator has turned negative with 5 stocks with bids higher than the last selling price and 9 with offers that were lower.
Gains| Clico Investments traded 40,000 shares valued at $900,700 to close at $22.51, Republic Financial Holdings closed with a gain of 2 cents to $112.18 with 7,210 shares valued at $808,818 changing hands.
Losses| ANSA McAL contributed 85,000 shares with a value of $5,418,750 but lost 23 cents in closing at a 52 weeks’ low of $63.75, Scotia Investments fell 10 cents to close at $1.90 while trading 17,822 shares and Unilever Caribbean fell by $1.81 with 2,114 shares trading to close at $66.
Firm Trades| Grace Kennedy closed with 200 shares changing hands at $5.01, JMMB Group traded 196,232 shares at 60 cents, National Commercial Bank had 200 shares changing hand to close at $2.45, Point Lisas traded 145 shares at $4 and Trinidad Cement traded 3,500 shares to end at $3.75.
Scotia Group profit jumps 33%
Scotia Group profit jumps
Net interest income for the period was $6.23 billion, up from $6.08 billion generated in similar quarter in 2015. This was primarily due to a fall in interest expenses of $239 million. The Group saw a slight dip in interest income of $89 million even as loans grew 6.9 percent to $156.35 billion while investments rose by 28.5 percent to $112 billion. Customer deposits grew 10.7 percent to $219 billion. The group enjoyed better loan losses experience with a reduction of $87 million to $257 million, a 25 percent reduction compared with the prior year outturn, aided by what management stated as “enhanced adjudication, monitoring and recovery efforts.”
Other revenue for the quarter amounted to $2.8 billion, a decrease of $95 million compared to the quarter ended January, 2015. The reduction was due “to net losses on financial assets resulting from marked-to-market movements on securities, lower foreign currency gains, offset by the growth in net fee and commission income from increased transaction volumes on our credit card and merchant service business segments. Other revenue was $1.1 billion below the previous quarter, due primarily to the one-time actuarial release of $1 billion booked in the October quarter of 2015, resulting from the changes to the income tax regime for insurance companies in 2015” the banking group’s management stated in their report accompanying the financials.
Operating Expenses for the three months amounted to $5.6 billion, a decrease of $733 billion or 11.61 percent compared to prior year. Asset tax fell by $339 million as the rate for regulated insurance companies moved from 100bps to 25bps; correspondingly, the corporate income tax rate for these entities was increased from 15 percent to 25 percent. Salary related and other operating expenses were down $394 million, flowing from the benefits of efficiency initiatives including closure of some branches implemented in 2015.
Earnings per share for the quarter, came in at 62 cents compared with 47 cents in 2015 and seem poised to hit the $4 mark for the fiscal year ending in October. The stock traded at $32 on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Friday.
Big premium for 2 Jamaican stocks on TTSE
Scotia Investments traded at a new high on Friday at $2 (J$38)
The Composite Index lost 1.84 points to close at 1,167.02, the All T&T Index dropped 4.10 points to close at 1,892.59 and the Cross Listed Index gained 0.06 points to close at 58.50.
IC bid-offer Indicator| The Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator has turned negative with 5 stocks with bids higher than the last selling price and 11 with offers that were lower.
Gains| Grace Kennedy closed at a 52 weeks’ high of $5.01 or the equivalent of J$94 compared to $83 the stock traded at in Kingston on Friday as 60,000 units changed hands at 1 cent higher. National Flour with 25,000 shares changing closed with a gain of 2 cents at $1.83 and Scotia Investments climbed 10 cents to close at a 52 weeks’ high of $2 while trading 44,176 shares. The price the stock closed at is the equivalent of J$38 and compares with $30 it traded at in Kingston on Friday.
Losses| ANSA McAL contributed a mere 9,852 shares but lost 76 cents in closing at a 52 weeks’ low of $63.98, First Citizens traded 100 shares at $34.99 but lost 1 cent at the close, Guardian Holdings closed with 3,619 units changing hands at $13.66 after losing 4 cents.
Scotiabank closed with 1,977 shares changing hands with a 1 cent loss to end at a 52 weeks’ low of $59.74, Trinidad and Tobago NGL lost 5 cents and closed at $18.94 with 4,700 units trading. Trinidad Cement traded 20,421 shares and lost 15 cents to end at $3.75 and West Indian Tobacco lost 3 cents in trading 1,319 shares to close at $126.25.Firm Trades| Clico Investments traded 580 shares to close at $22.50, Massy Holdings traded 4 shares to close at $57.98, National Commercial Bank with 55,181 shares changing hand to close at $2.45 and L.J. Williams $0.10 A share had 41,048 units trading at 22 cents after losing 3 cents for a 52 weeks’ low.
Buoyant FX trading on Friday
Trading in the Jamaican foreign exchange market on Friday saw relatively of high volumes for with dealers buying the equivalent of US$46,633,736 and selling US$39,279,414, in contrast with US$44,241,712 purchased and US$39,776,239 sold on Thursday.
In US dollars trading, dealers bought US$42,784,797 compared to US$40,866,243 on Thursday, with the buying rate for the US dollar rising 1 cent to $121.35. A total of US$37,116,900 was sold versus US$38,015,855 on 
Thursday as the selling rate slipped 1 cent to $121.87. The Canadian dollar buying rate fell $1.10 to end at $87.62 with dealers buying C$1,343,026 and selling C$557,528, at an average rate that fell $1.10 to $89.70. The rate for buying the British Pound rose 92 cents to $168.64 for the purchase of £1,864,225, while £489,331 was sold, with the rate falling 41 cents to $170.13. At the end of trading, the selling rate for Euro, climbed $1.28 to close at J$133.24, from Thursday’s rate, according to data from Bank of Jamaica, while dealers purchased the European common currency at J$130.66 for a rise of $1.43 from Thursday’s rate. The US dollar equivalent of other currencies 
traded, amounts to US$288,389 being bought, while US$1,069,050 was sold.
Highs & Lows| Notable changes to the highest and lowest rates the currencies traded at are, a jump of $1.20 in the highest selling rate for the US dollar that ended at $128.90, the highest selling rate of the Canadian dollar climbed $1.85 to $94.45 and the highest selling rate for the British Pound gained $2.73 to $178.42.
Juniors rise again on Friday
Blue Power fell 95 cents on Friday.
The junior market rose 1.23 percent on Friday with advancing and declining stocks equalling each other, with low volume of stocks traded. The market rose 24.08 points to end at 1,984.03 with 15 securities trading of which 4 declined and 5 advanced. The market ended with 900,074 units changing hands, valued at $3,939,648.
At the close, 1 security ended with no bid and 5 securities had no stocks being offered for sale. There were 7 stocks closing with bids that were higher than their last selling prices and 3 ended with lower offers.
In trading, AMG Packaging closed with 2,784 units changing hands for a loss of 50 cents to close at $12.50, Blue Power ended with 2,406 shares changing hands with a loss of 95 cents at $10.05, C2W Music traded 50,000 units at 45 cents, Caribbean Cream gained 42 cents to close at $4.15 with 27,930 units traded. Carib Flavours had 27,930 units changing hands at $8.60, Caribbean Producers had 10,410 units changing hands to close at $4.85, 
Derrimon Trading had 8,250 units changing hands to close with a loss of 48 cents at $4.50, Honey Bun traded just 9,500 shares to close at $16.50 but the price reached an intraday high of $17.55 during trading. Jamaican Teas rose 30 cents, ending with 22,412 units changing hands at $6.80, KLE Group rose by 20 cents to $2.10 with 4,591 units changing hands, Lasco Distributors closed with 284,369 units trading, to end 9 cent higher at $5.60. Lasco Financial rose 5 cents to end at $3.06 with 280,642 shares changing hands, Lasco Manufacturing ended trading with 163,393 shares to close at $4 after falling 10 cents, Medical Disposables traded 1,000 units and closed at $3.50 and tTech traded 26,387 shares to close with a loss of 1 cent at $4.50.
JSE makes further gains on Friday
Scotia Group traded 1,633,165 shares to gain $1.25 on Friday
Jamaican stocks recorded gains for the second consecutive trading session on Friday, but price movements continue to be fluid with 12 securities rising while 11 fell as 36 changed hands, in all market segments.
At the close 1 stock traded at a 52 weeks’ intraday high with 5,162,901 units valued at $126,099,432 changed hands in all markets. The junior market accounted for 900,074 units changing hands, valued at $3,939,648.
The JSE Market Index rose 919.66 points to 155,747.82 the all Jamaica Composite Index gained 1,027.77 points to end at 173,013.27 and the JSE combined index climbed 1,084.68 points to close at 164,777.55.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading was 13 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 11 with lower offers.At the end of the market activities, Caribbean Cement dropped $1.50 to end at $23.50 with 213,601 shares trading, Carreras closed at $65, while trading 6,840 units, Grace Kennedy ended with 165,900 shares trading to close at $83 after declining by 95 cents, the stock traded in Trinidad at the equivalent of $95 on Friday. Jamaica Broilers fell 60 cents after trading 15,761 units to close at $14, Jamaica Stock Exchange traded 37,020 shares to end at $23, JMMB Group had 745,095 units changing hands but lost 24 cents to close at $10.41, Kingston Wharves had 22,126 shares trading with a gain of 8 cents at $11.39.
Mayberry Investments traded 1,000 shares to close with a gain of 61 cents at $4.70, National Commercial Bank had 310,354 shares changing hands but the price fell $1 to close at $40, 138 Student Living traded 6,000 shares at $5.80, Pan Jamaican Investments traded 22,256 units at $95. Sagicor Group rose 4 cents with 584,105 shares changing hands at $23.55, Scotia Group had 1,633,165 shares changing hands to close with a gain of $1.25 at $32, Scotia Investments rose $2 with 380,420 units changing hands at $30. Supreme Ventures gained 5 cents and closed at $5.25 with 28,335 units changing hands and Proven Investments ordinary share traded 71,545 units at 21.75 US cents after rising by 0.75 cent.
JSE enjoyed gains on Thursday
The Jamaican stocks made modest recovery on Thursday, with rising securities numbering 14 while 9 fell as 33 changed hands in all market segments. At the close 2 stocks ended at the close at 52 weeks’ highs with 7,003,022 units valued at $220,074,759.83 changed hands in all markets. The junior market 
accounted for 1,023,326 units changing hands, valued at $4,965,280.
The JSE Market Index rose 584.16 points to 154,828.16 the all Jamaica Composite Index gained 652.83 points to end at 171,985.50 and the JSE combined index climbed 703.51 points to close at 163,692.87.
The market saw a number of stock recording large price movements with Caribbean Cement jumping $2.94 Jamaica Producers traded 67,930 shares and gained of $5.50 to close at a new 52 weeks’ high of $35.50, Grace up 95 cents while trading 432,842 units, National Commercial Bank with a gain of 85 cents with 3,860,701 shares traded. Berger Paints lost 88 cents. Cable & Wireless traded 507,879 units, JMMB Group traded 410,308 units to gain 23 cents.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading was 17 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 8 with lower offers. 
