( TUSTEX) – The market indexes continued to rise for the first three working days this week on the back of extended gains from SOTETEL and SFBT. The entrance of a foreign retailer in BATAM’s capital strengthened sentiment over distribution sector at the end of the week and triggered hopes for further interesting international deals for the near future. SMART index edged higher 1.26 percent whereas industrials outperformed with 4.67 percent and financials remained in negative territory.
SFBT and SOTETEL have made gains from Monday to Thursday. Downturn on Friday session has curbed the trend into both stocks as the market run into short profit taking moves. SFBT reached TND 173 in Thursday price high when daily activity soared to a high of TND 1.8 million but at the Friday closes, the share recorded 5.96 percent over the week paring down by 1.5 percent and activity more than halved in the meanwhile. Investors bent on bracing buying orders along firm conviction that trend robustness is on way. Such a stance is seen on SOTETEL as well. The share benefited from higher enthusiasm as speculations about the imminence of another capital lift steamed ahead and was since spread over the market. The common stocks put on 6.81 percent this week though it experienced a sharp drop on Friday of 4.15 percent. The traded volume still hovered around the same average at TND 2.760 million and analysts are no longer poised to rationalize their expectations.
BATAM, the hire-purchasing specialist in retail distribution has seen its shares anyhow picked up reversing long market repulsion this week. Prices momentum has accelerated sharply at the end of the week amid information releases about a plan from a foreign retailer to acquire a 30 percent stake in the company’s capital. The market overreacted to this event and snapped the existing tiny offer, which then pushed the prices higher. As a result unsatisfied demand reached a historic record of 11,000 on Friday and stock made a weekly gain of 13 percent after putting equally strides by 4.4 percent during the two previous days. About 32,320 shares changed hands against TND 0.6 million, or 5 percent of the floating capital. It's expected that scarce offer would drag activity downwards.
Banking showed inside three stocks a little improvement that began on the back of Wednesday resumption. BNDT, ATB and UIB were the big winners halting the bearish mood hitting the major stocks of the sector. BNDT surged 6.86 percent and ATB 5.87 percent. ATB took advantage from the bourse closure on Tuesday to rebound by 5.79 percent at TND 14.980 on Wednesday whereas BNDT ended the week with more than 2.8 percent gain in the last two sessions.
Despite the break of Tuesday, activity on the market proved buoyant as volume barely changed at TND 17.5 million. The rebound in SFBT prices beyond the 150 mark has been supplying the retail investors’ enthusiasm as 33,839 shares changed hands this week against an average 18,000 two weeks ago. BIAT was very active as a block transfer of 33.490 shares was dealt Thursday lifting the traded volume over TND one million.
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