The BLOM Stock Index (BSI) rose by a marginal 0.72% to end the week ending December 19th at 764.02 points. The BSE’s market capitalization rose from last week’s $7.44B to this week’s $7.47B. In turn, the average traded volume and value improved totaling 24,201 shares worth $198,998 this week compared to last week’s 20,628 shares worth $111,327.
Meanwhile, the regional equity indices climbed over the week, with the S&P Pan Arab Composite Large Mid Cap Index increasing by 3.03%, while the S&P AFE 40 climbed by a weekly 2.99% and in its turn, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index climbed by a weekly 3.35%.
As for the regional equity markets, the week’s best performing bourses Egypt, Dubai and Bahrain which recorded the weekly increases of 2.73%, 2.72% and 1.84%, respectively. Meanwhile, the biggest loser was the equity markets of Tunisia that fell by a weekly 0.14% by the week ending Dec. 20th.
On the Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE), the real estate (RE) sector continued to grasp the largest stake of the total traded value by grasping a share of 67.7%, while banks grasped a portion of trades too, reaching 31.8% of the total. The industrial sector in its turn composed 0.5% of total traded value this week.
In the RE sector, share prices of Solidere A and B jumped by a substantial 7.09% and 10.93% to close at $6.04 and $5.99, respectively, by the week ending Dec. 19th. In the banking sector, the listed shares witnessed no worthy changes in prices of listed shares.
In the industrial sector, HOLCIM shares recorded a weekly uptick of 2.63% to $9.75.
Meanwhile, the BLOM Preferred Stock Index (BPSI) fell by 4.51% to 75.12 points over the week, with the major price slump of 13.2% recorded in the shares of Bank Audi Preferred “I” which ended the week at $77.95
On the London Stock Exchange, BLOM and Audi GDR shares fell by 1.67% and 21.05% to close at $1.77 and $1.50.
On December 19th, a new PM was designated the task of forming a government with the priority to implement urgent reforms needed for the country’s economic recovery, with unanimous political consent. The PM is scheduled to meet representatives from all different political blocs this Saturday 21st and discussions continue next week on the formation of a government. Therefore, the trading activity in the coming week will be largely defined by the developments on the political front which usually go hand-in-hand with investors’ confidence in the Lebanese market.