Zagreb Bank Shares Up Four Percent

Today, the most traded shares on the Zagreb Stock Exchange are those of Zagreb Bank and T-HT, while the rest of the market is relatively calm, indicating that investors are reluctant to expose themselves to shares in a rather uncertain domestic macroeconomic environment.

The Crobex index was up 0.65 percent at 2,148 points at 1:00 PM. Crobex10 strengthened by 0.35 percent to 1,135 points. The regular turnover in shares amounted to around 21.6 million kuna, što is approximately four million less than yesterday at this time. "If we dig below the surface of the domestic market, despite nešto higher turnover in recent days, its structure shows that trading is actually weak. For example, today, only two issues are in focus for investors – Zagreb Bank and T-HT. The rise in Crobex is primarily due to the increase in the share prices of Podravka and Zagreb Bank," says Stjepan Laća, broker and investment advisor at the brokerage firm Finesa Capital. The most liquid is currently the share of Zagreb Bank, which achieved nearly 10 million kuna in turnover.

Its price jumped 4.02 percent to 271.5 kuna. The impetus for trading in this share came this morning from Zagreb Bank, which announced that it plans to acquire its own shares up to a total amount of 7.68 million kuna by the end of February. The shares are being acquired for distribution to its employees. The only other share to achieve million kuna turnover was T-HT, with a turnover of eight million kuna, during which its price weakened by 0.36 percent to 308.5 kuna. Among the components of Crobex, a significant price jump was also achieved by the share of Podravka, by 3.3 percent to 339.99 kuna, with a turnover of 118,500 kuna. The low trading volume in the domestic market is a consequence of the uncertain domestic macroeconomic environment, notes Laća. "Why would investors expose themselves to risk in the stock market while reading almost daily in the newspapers about planned tax changes such as the abolition of the solidarity tax and the increase in the value-added tax rate, or the rebalancing of the state budget, followed by denials of the same?

Perhaps this is testing the pulse of the public, but it creates a sense of uncertainty and instability among investors," emphasizes Laća. From global exchanges, however, positive signals continue to arrive. European stock indices are up between 0.5 and 1 percent, and U.S. futures indices also indicate a positive start to trading. "On foreign exchanges, investor optimism is fueled by good business reports from companies. So far, 350 companies whose shares are included in the S&P 500 index have reported financial results for the last quarter of last year, with 76 percent exceeding analysts’ expectations regarding earnings per share," Laća states. (H)