BANKING STOCKS took centre stage yesterday pushing the all-share index slightly higher to 240 points, a 1.18 per cent increase.
A last-minute rush for bank shares also sent the FTSE/CySE on a 1.62 per cent upward climb to end at 1,030. Volume was still on the low side at £9 million but still the highest so far this week.
Gainers outran losers with 89 companies ending on a positive note compared to 49, which took a step backwards, and 73, which remained unchanged.
“The shares remaining unchanged have been increasing which indicates that investors are staying put, waiting for the market conditions to improve,” said one Nicosia broker.
The three main banks were the most actively traded of the day taking the sub sector 2.09 per cent higher. Bank of Cyprus (BoC) added six cents to £3.27 on a volume of £1.3 million. Hellenic Bank came in second with a volume of almost one million pounds and over 600,000 shares changing hands. The share ended at £1.42 with no change while Laiki Bank jumped into third place, notching up seven cents to £3.05.
BoC stocks also benefited from reports that it would unveil new plans in expanding its operations in Greece. The bank has already announced that it had secured the necessary licence from Greece for the creation of branches promoting insurance activities,
“It was BoC and Laiki which pushed the index up after attracting investors in the last five minutes,” the broker said.
“The second part of the session was quite strong, especially right before closing. There were a few investors that were determined to take positions before the end of the session. That is the only positive sign we have had during the last few sessions.”
Elsewhere GlobalSoft continued its roller coaster ride jumping five cents yesterday to £4.70 pulling the technology sector up 0.14 per cent.
Reverse buyout candidate, Agros Development Company continued its bull run for the second day in a row, gaining nine cents to close at £2.26.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
