Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/692424
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 15 JUNE 2016 11 Business Today www.creditinfo.com.mt info@creditinfo.com.mt Tel: 2131 2344 Your Local Partner for Credit Risk Management Solutions Supporting you all the way Market Commentary: Markets infl uenced by Fed, BOJ and Brexit European stock traded lower, hovering around three-week lows, with investors concerned about whether the UK will remain in the European Union. Banking shares were among the decliners as investors picked up the pace, investing in more safe securities. In fact, government bond prices were higher, which in turn led to record low yields. From the currency aspect, the British Pound against the US Dollar hit the levels from the middle of April ahead of the United Kingdom's referendum on European Union membership scheduled for next week. Sterling was 0.65% down, trading at $1.4161. Pressured by the latest polls, which showed Britons preferring the leave vote, the pound also dropped 1.4% against the yen to a three-year low. The sterling slump is explained by the UK's huge current account deficit, which could keep on widening if Brexit is voted. Oil prices were below the psychologically important $50 mark. Aside from concerns over the supply, oil markets are keeping an eye over US crude inventories and general market demand, especially after Friday's rise in the oil-rig count. Brent futures for August delivery were below, hitting a session low at $49.80 per barrel earlier on Monday, while West Texas Intermediate for July delivery remained under the $50 mark. The trading week in Wall Street also started in a grim mood, with a minute of silence for the victims of Orlando. Mixed feelings reigned in the US stock market as investors are trying to find clues on what will be the moves of the Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan on June 15-16. The Dow Jones Industrial average finished 0.74% lower, the S&P 500 closed 0.81% lower and the Nasdaq 100 finished 0.86% down. The Fed is now widely expected to wait and see the outcome of the United Kingdom's Brexit referendum on June 23. Corporate news The world's leading international security group G4S dropped by 7% after the security firm confirmed that the suspect in Sunday's shooting at an Orlando nightclub was their employee. This episode left 50 dead and 53 injured in the deadliest shooting in US history. On the Tech side, Dutch communications and technology company VimpelCom Ltd will collaborate with Ericsson after they reached a deal worth over $1 billion, the company announced on Monday. The deal will see VimpelCom improve and digitalize its IT infrastructure on a global level with the help of Ericsson's software and cloud- based technologies. Some of the innovations will include the introduction of a more user- friendly interface and quicker product and service development. Meanwhile, Microsoft Corp. and LinkedIn Corporation reached a deal, "under which Microsoft will acquire LinkedIn for $196 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $26.2 billion, inclusive of LinkedIn's net cash". The transaction would value LinkedIn well over its current market capitalisation of $15.27 billion. According to Standard and Poor, even though the deal will be entirely funded by the issuance of debt, it is not expected to hurt the credit quality of Microsoft. Tracking this news, Microsoft shares fell 2.60% whilst LinkedIn was up 46.64%. This article was issued by Roderick Duca, Trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, www.cc.com. mt . The information, views and opinions provided in this article are being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website. Tunisie Telecom offers GO shareholders €2.87 a share Tunisie Telecom offers to purchase GO shares at €2.87 per share from shareholders in an attempt to provide benefi ts and create synergy for GO Tunisie Telecom, the preferred bidder for telecoms company GO, has offered shareholders the option to dispose of their shares at €2.87 a share. The offer is available to shareholders who are registered on the company's register. Tunisie Telecom has outlined that shareholders who acquire their shares in GO after the record date of 17 June are not eligible for the offer. The acceptance period will start on 24 June at 8:30 and end on 22 July at 17:00. "Tunisie Telecom believes that the proposed transaction presents the group with the opportunity to create a strong trans-Mediterranean telecoms partnership which will support GO's growth opportunities in its domestic market while providing a key centre of excellence for the wider Group. It will also provide a number of benefits and attractive synergies for the group, as set out in the offer document," the company said. "We are very excited about this transaction as we believe that GO and Tunisie Telecom can achieve more together than they can apart. At the same time, we recognise that GO's proven history of growth is based upon strong local and customer support in Malta and we are pleased to confirm that it is our intention to maintain GO as a publicly listed company," added the chairman and chief executive officer of Tunisie Telecom, Nizar Bouguila. In the coming days, GO will be issuing an opinion on the offer document in line with its obligations under the listing rules. Oil price back below $50 Oil prices fell further on Tuesday, pushed lower for the fourth con- secutive day as market sentiment continued to turn, despite a bull- ish report from the International Energy Agency. Yesterday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) revised its demand forecast upward for this year by 100,000 barrels a day, to 1.3 million barrels a day from 1.2 million barrels a day. The demand will be led by emerging markets in India and China as the manufacturing industry grows, the report said. The IEA also released its first demand forecast for 2017, for 1.3 million barrels a day. But the international agency warned that should supply be restored in Nigeria and Canada there could be a dip in prices. Nigerian output fell 250,000 barrels a day to 1.37 million barrels a day in June, levels not seen in almost 30 years. Gains to demand were limited as the IEA indicated that supply was strong from elsewhere in the world. Oil output in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates was up in May by 120,000 barrels a day and 70,000 barrels a day, respectively. Despite the report, market bullishness is dissipating as US production shows signs of recovering. Late on Monday, the US- based Genscape Inc. tipped a 525,000-barrel increase in U.S. crude stockpiles in the week ended 10 June. Last Friday, Baker Hughes Inc. reported the number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S. rose for the second-straight week. "The worry is that when prices reach $60 a barrel, we will see new investments in shale exploration," Barnabas Gan, an economist at OCBC said. The American Petroleum Institute will release fresh estimates Tuesday on the level of U.S. crude stocks, which could send prices tumbling further if it predicts a significant stock build. Also hurting prices, financial markets have had a higher sense of risk aversion in the lead-up to Britain's referendum on leaving the European Union on 23 June.