Stocks to perform better

The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) is expected to continue its upward drive this week with many stocks making progress.

With most listed firms releasing resilient results last week, GCB, Fan Milk, SG-SSB and TOTAL, among other stocks, are likely to register gains this week.

Merban Stockbrokers Limited, stock analysts, who made this known, reported that the volume and value of shares traded last week were impressive with a total of 4.02 million shares valued at GH¢2.42 million.

The bulls were at play on the market last week with demand for shares in sixteen equities sending the indices higher.

The most traded stocks were UT Bank (1.45m), CAL Bank (931,155) and SIC Insurance (506,360).

Benso Oil Palm led the bulls with a gain of 15.65 percent to close at GH¢1.70.

Fan Milk was also in demand edging up by 11.94 percent to GH¢4.22 while Ghana Oil and Ecobank Ghana bagged 11.59 percent and 8.33 percent to 77GHp and GH¢3.25 respectively.

Investors with shares in CAL and TOTAL were also richer with their share prices climbing 5.6 percent and 4.8 percent to 57GHp and GH¢23.50 respectively.

Other key movers were GCB and SG-SSB which continued their upward drive with gains of 3.8 percent and 2.9 percent to end the week at GH¢2.73 and 70GHp respectively. Unilever Ghana and Guinness Ghana completed the list rising by 2 percent and 1 percent to GH¢10.20 and GH¢2.95 respectively.

On the flip side, Stanchart was under selling pressure dropping 50GHp to GH¢11 while Ayrton Drugs eased to 17GHp from 18GHp.

Though two equities closed the week down, the benchmark Composite Index (CI) defied the laggards leaping by 46.46 points to close the week at 1,327.80.

In all, 16 equities rallied during the week while two others slid.

BOPP, FML, GOIL and EBG were head advancers as Treasury rates unchanged.

Money market rates were unchanged at the auction held last Friday February 1, 2013, as investors look forward to the BoG’s MPC meeting this week.

The 91 and 182-day bills were unchanged from the previous week’s 22.80 percent and 22.69 percent while the 1-Year and 2-Year Notes were also stable at 22.90 percent and 23 percent respectively.

Though the BoG had targeted GH¢460 million in short term bills and notes, bids of GH¢317.35 million submitted by dealers were accepted.

BoG is expected to raise GH¢485 million in bills and notes at the next auction held on February 8, 2013.

On the forex market, the local currency bounced back against the Euro, Pound and Swiss Franc but slipped against the Dollar and the Rand.

The Cedi appreciated by 1.62 percent and 0.77 percent against the Euro and the Pound with average rates on the interbank market reading GH¢2.55 and GH¢3.0 respectively.

The Cedi also edged up by 0.76 percent against the Swiss Franc with midrates by interbank traders hovering around GH¢2.08.

Against the Dollar and the Rand, the local currency gave up 0.14 percent and 0.28 percent to close at GH¢1.91 and GH¢0.21 respectively.