BSI At All-Time High Driven By Exceptional Increase in Solidere Stocks

This week, the bourse in Lebanon witnessed an exceptional booming driven by remarkable increase in Solidere Stocks’ prices. Some traders looked onto realizing profits by selling their securities as today market’s price generates earnings for their investments bought at much lower prices before the crisis. The received amount for the transaction although paid in check not fresh could guarantee a revenue well above the initial price before 2019 once the check is discounted at today’s market rate.

In details, the BLOM Stock Index (BSI) compiled by BLOMInvest Bank on a daily basis soared

To an all-time high and added 16.60% on a weekly basis to reach 2,016.779 on March 17, 2023. The market capitalization on the Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE) increased weekly from $17.72B to $20.67B. The average volume and value of trades also totaled 38,344 shares worth $2,659,828 compared to 52,028 shares worth $2,105,606 last week.

On the Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE), the real estate sector grasped the lion’s share of the BSE’s trading value with a stake of 99.09%, while the banking and industrial sector grasped the respective shares of 0.74% and 0.18%. The most noteworthy trades throughout the mentioned period included:

• Solidere (A) shares jumped by 22.50% to settle at $98/ share
• Solidere (B) shares soared by 22.85% to settle at $100/ share
• HOLCIM retreated by42% to settle at $32/ share
• BLOM GDR contracted by 9.09% to settle at $2.50/ share
• Audi GDR dropped by 2.19% to settle at $1.34/ share
• Audi listed decreased by 3.85% to settle at $1.50/ share

As for the BLOM Preferred Shares Index (BPSI), it remained constant at 41.01 by March 17, 2023.

In the Arab region, overall bourses recorded a worst performance this week. S&P Pan Arab and MSCI indices both decreased weekly by 4.97%  and 2.79%, respectively, to stand at 862.22 and 941.35 point by March 17. Meanwhile, the bourse Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE as well as Bahrain contracted each respectively by 10.64%, 7.70%, 4.65%, and 1.77% and 0.77% respectively by the end of week March 17, 2023.

As for the U.S equity market, the latest developments in the US and European banking sector were enough to push market into dropping their risky assets and headed towards safer investments. However, US stocks ended the week higher as a group of large banks announced $30B in deposits into First Republic Bank which showed support and eased investors’ sentiments. As such, S&P 500 and NASDAQ re-picked and added each 0.87% and 3.28% weekly to stand at 3,960.28 and 11,717.28 by the end of week March 17, 2023.

European stocks set for biggest weekly slump since Mid-December as traders spiced recession risks and concerns over the banking sector. European indices are broadly lower with DAX and CAC 40 both decreased by 3.65% and 3.56% respectively on a weekly basis to end the week at 14,869.80 and 6,971.44. FTSE 100 index recorded a drop of 4.83% to stand at 7,372.90 by the end of March 17, 2023 while Japanese stocks followed global stock market and declined by 2.88% to stand at 27,333.79 by March 17, 2023 as Asian investors weighed whether the turmoil in the banking sector in US and Europe would drag down the global economy.