RIGA - In a week of active trading, markets felt the effects of both profit-taking
and large block deals. The total Baltic List turnover rose to 27.49 million
euros, with Estonian stocks making up the most trade, or 85.19 percent of
the total, followed by Latvian and Lithuanian stocks making up a respective
0.33 percent and 14.39 percent.
Lithuania's television tube manufacturer Ekranas, up 7.30 percent, revealed
itself as the biggest gainer of last week while the Latvijas Kugnieciba
shipping company gained 3.93 percent and Ventspils Nafta oil terminal stocks
were up 3.66 percent. The biggest losers on the Baltic List were Estonia's
Hansapank, down 8.68 percent, and Lithuania's Vilnius Vingis electronics,
down 8.33 percent, as well as Lietuvos Telekomas, which lost 8.05 percent.
In Estonia the decline that began on the Tallinn Stock Exchange in the
middle of the week continued on Sept. 12 as profit-taking again surpassed
interest in buying.
The TALSE index dropped 2.64 percent to 284.75 points and the total turnover
from 153 deals added up to 66.54 million kroons (4.25 million euros).
"The new peak levels came a bit too easily, therefore profit-taking turned
out a little steeper than expected," said Sten Sumberg, chief of the markets
department at the investment bank Suprema.
In trade worth 58.8 million kroons, Hansapank declined 4.81 percent to
312.93 kroons.
In Latvia, the turnover of the Riga Stock Exchange was boosted considerably
last week with a number of large direct or block deals, with most interest
shown for second list stocks.
On Sept. 11 seven block deals saw 26.36 percent of the Liepajas Metalurgs
steelworks company transferred from an offshore to the ownership of board
member Kirovs Lipmans, who claims he has always said he owns this much of
the company. As a result, the weekly turnover for LM totaled 5.56 million
euros, with the closing price down 2.78 percent.
The Latvijas Gaze gas utility gained 0.68 percent, while the Ventspils Nafta
oil terminal was up 6.84 percent.
Lithuania's stock exchange closed the weekly session in a mixed mood as the
bullish trends, which prevailed in the first half of the week, were replaced
by downward motion, prompted by profit-taking.
On the Official List, Rokiskio Suris rose 1.95 percent to 47 litas (13.6
euros) amid a weekly turnover of 4.88 million litas. On Sept. 10 the company
climbed to 49.5 litas ‹ the highest level since spring of 1998 when the
share price of the company reached the ceiling of 50 litas.
Bellwether Lietuvos Telekomas declined 8.05 percent to 1.6 litas' while the
leading electronics producer Vilniaus Vingis plunged 8.33 percent to 7.7
litas with 905,900 litas worth of stocks changing hands.
Block deals brought in gains for Lithuanian stocks. As a result of these
types of deals Lietuvos Telekomas, Vilniaus Vingis and Snaige brought in
additional 1.95 million litas, 1.5 million litas and 229,500 litas in
stocks, respectively.
Siauliu Bank gained 4.55 percent to reach 1.15 litas. The shipper Lietuvos
Juru Laivininkyste surged 10.53 percent to 0.21 litas, while the toilet
paper and hardboard company Grigiskes rose 4.13 percent to 2.52 litas.
