Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/331448
12 Business Today maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 18 JUNE 2014 M&A talk lifts stocks, Iraq tensions ease slightly Another record year for IIG Bank (Malta) Ltd A bout of mergers and acquisitions gave European stocks a shot in the arm on Tuesday, while commodity and emerging market investors were somewhat calmed by the absence of an escalation in the Iraq crisis over- night. Oil and gold eased back as U.S. and Iranian officials, in a rare sign of rapprochement, discussed the crisis on the sidelines of a nuclear conference in Vienna although they both ruled out military cooperation to face down the Sunni militant onslaught that threatens to break the country up. "There is a growing sense that we could see a stalemate after the U.S. signaled that it was ready to talk with Iran," said Jim Reid, market strategist at Deutsche Bank. The slightly more benign geopolitical backdrop allowed European equities to take their cue from M&A speculation. Shares in British pharmaceutical group Shire SHP.L led European bourses higher after Reuters reported that it hired investment bank Citi C.N as an adviser, expecting to receive takeover approaches following a wave of deals in the healthcare sector. "We've been buyers of Shire recently and on the back of this we'd look to add to positions," said Manoj Ladwa, the head of trading at TJM Partners. Healthcare companies have seen a wave of merger and acquisition speculation in the past two months, and Shire's stock has risen nearly 30 percent since mid-April. At 0845 GMT Europe's leading FTSEurofirst 300 index was up 0.4 percent at 1389 points. Germany's DAX was up 0.8 percent at 9966 points, Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.2 percent at 6765 points and France's CAC 40 was up 0.5 percent at 4533 points. Brent crude oil futures fell 0.5 percent to $112.39 a barrel LCOc1, pulling further back from last week's nine-month high, and gold also fell 0.5 percent to $1,265 an ounce. In currencies, the Australian dollar fell 0.6 percent to $0.9344 after minutes of the Australian central bank's June 3 meeting were more dovish than expected. Sterling retreated from Monday's five-year high above $1.70 after British inflation fell to 1.5 percent in May, its lowest in over four years, casting some doubt whether Bank of England policymakers will raise interest rates this year. The pound slipped 0.2 percent to $1.6950, while the euro was steady against the dollar at $1.3573 and the greenback was up slightly against the yen at 102.02 yen. Elsewhere, emerging markets took stock of a 10 percent plunge in Argentina's Merval stock market index .MERV on Monday after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the country's appeal over its battle with hedge funds that refused to take part in its debt restructurings. The move risks sending Argentina into a fresh sovereign default. President Christina Kirchner said in an address to the nation that Argentina will honor all its restructured debts, but didn't say how. Turkey's lira and South Africa's rand held firm against the dollar. "Despite the negative country- specific emerging market headlines, overall emerging market appetite remains fairly healthy," said Deutsche Bank's Reid. This was despite tension in Ukraine showing no sign of abating as Russia cut off gas to Ukraine in a dispute over unpaid bills that could disrupt supplies to the rest of Europe and set back hopes for peace between the former Soviet neighbors. The year ended 31 December 2013 was another very positive year for IIG Bank. Not only did the Bank's balance sheet grow by over 40%, from $78.5 million to $111 million, but also during the year, the Bank managed to expand its business of trade finance into new geographical areas and new industries. During the second half of 2013, the Bank started to develop its operational capabilities and correspondent banking network to support this new business, which focuses more on financing the cycle of commodity trade, flows in a structured manner. During 2013, the Bank generated total revenues before tax of $1,827,462 up from $1,449,174 in 2012, made up of $1,005,910 in operating profit before tax and $821,552 in net gains on financial assets. In the initial months of 2014, the Bank's loan portfolio increased by 65% to $50 million and customer deposits reached $95 million. All the 2012 revenues attributable to the shareholder were reinvested in the Bank in the form of Tier I capital while the Board has recommended that the same policy is adopted in respect of the 2013 revenues. IIG Bank is successfully building a client base with a global reach. As an international trade finance bank specialising in export finance of commodities, it is acquiring a client base of traders that typically trade in consumer consumables, construction materials and energy products all over the world, including the emerging markets. Reporting on the performance of the Bank, Raymond Busuttil, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of IIG Bank (Malta) Ltd, said, "The Bank is well on its way to establish a name for itself as a niche international trade finance bank. We are very excited by the response we have generated so far in these new markets. We promote a relationship-based customer service and receive excellent feedback from our customers in appreciation of our approach to service delivery." "Looking forward we believe that trade finance continues to be resilient despite the crises that crop up around the world from time to time. "These tend to cause some disruption of a temporary nature, but on the whole, demand for commodities continues to grow consistently, especially as the leading economies of the world continue to show clear signs of recovery. We certainly believe that despite our size, we have a role to play by taking advantage of select opportunities" "I take this opportunity to thank my colleagues for their dedication to deliver an excellent service and to our customers for their loyalty and support."