The Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) recorded a remarkable 30-month high on Monday, November 12, soaring 3.31 percent to close at 175.30 points, with a turnover of 7.8 million Jordanian dinars ($11 million). Investors stepped up purchases of top performing stocks, driven mainly by lower interest rates and a promise of high returns.
The surge in demand sent the prices of 53 shares up and 10 recorded slight falls, while the remaining 16 traded shares were unchanged. Blue-chip stocks such as International Tobacco and the Arab Bank were particularly in demand, the first rising 4.94 percent to close at 3.40 dinars, while the latter rose 4.91 percent to close at 224 dinars. Export Finance Bank, the Bank of Jordan and the Housing Bank for Trade and Finance were also among the listed firms recording share price increases.
The Amman stock exchange index closed last week at 161.83 points, up 4.8 percent on the previous seven days. The official 75-share Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) index has seen more than a 20 percent rise since the beginning of the year.
The market’s capitalization rose by 23 percent this year, up to 4.3 billion Jordanian dinars ($6.05 billion), while trading volume increased by 54 percent, official figures quoted by the Jordan Times indicate. The half-year profits of the listed firms rose by 134 percent, up to JD152 million. The profits of the banking sector, which controls over 55 percent of the market capitalization, rose by 28 percent, up to JD115 million. — (menareport.com)
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
