In October the Riga Stock Exchange trading volume amounted to EUR 14.64 million: equity trading volume was EUR 3.8 million, surpassed by debt trading EUR 10.84 million. Rigas Transporta flote with EUR 1.76 million turnover was the leader, followed by Ventspils nafta with EUR 0.47 million and Grindeks with EUR 0.25 million. The top companies according to capitalisation were Latvijas Gaze with EUR 364.6 million, Ventspils nafta with EUR 194.5 million, NORD/LB Latvija with EUR 114.7 million, and Latvijas kugnieciba with EUR 104. 6 million.
The main price winners of the month were Rigas Transporta flote (16.66%), Olainfarm (9.67%), and Grindeks (9.1%), while Kaija shares lost 19%, Ventspils nafta - 8.3%, and Rigas KB - 5.4% of the previous month's value. Equity market capitalisation at the end of October stood at EUR 930.4 million. Dow Jones Riga Stock Exchange index lost 2.1% since the end of September. The increase since the beginning of the year is 39.33%. Total debt market value at the end of October was EUR 671.68 million.
The Riga Stock Exchange has revised its decision regarding restructuring of securities lists and dissolving the Free List: the new Financial Instrument Market Law (to replace the present Law on Securities), to come into effect starting with January 1, 2004, stipulates that a registered stock exchange is obliged to provide a regulated market place for issuers that are not able to meet any quantitative requirements. Consequently, the RSE will retain Free list. The purpose of this change is in the interest of minority shareholders: dissolving the Free list would constrain the transfer of their holdings.
Vilnius
During the nine months of the year, the GDP of Lithuania, according to the preliminary data, augmented by 8.1 %, compared to that of the corresponding period last year. At the beginning of November, the international rating agency Fitch revised its credit rating for Lithuania upgrading it from 'stable' to 'positive'.
Trading on the Stock Exchange, although less dynamic than in the previous three months, was quite active and unpredictable. During the month, the weighting of the share index LITIN decreased by 2%, while LITIN-G and LITIN-10 fell by more than 7%. The same decrease was recorded in the capitalization of the listed shares; at the end of the month it amounted to EUR 2 570 million.
The share turnover (EUR 11 million) during the month under review was higher than that in October last year (EUR 6.7 million), but exceeded the monthly turnover of shares only of the first three months of the year, going down by 44%, compared to that in September. The turnover of T-bills was EUR 36.5 million, analogous to that in October 2002, but the highest in the last four months of the current year. Total turnover of securities in October equalled EUR 48 million.
From the beginning of the year, the Exchange turnover reached EUR 480.5 million, 3.5% up on the corresponding period last year. Share trading was lower by 10% - in the total securities turnover they accounted for 30% (in October 2002, 34%).
Tallinn
Turnover of Tallinn Stock Exchange reached EUR 44.38 million in October 2003, bringing the exchange's 10-months turnover to EUR 400 million. TALSE index closed at 273.6 points, up 29% from the beginning of the year.
The Q3 financial results of TSE flagships Estonian Telecom, Hansabank and Norma were released in October. Net profit of Estonian Telecom stood at EUR 22.6 million in Q3 (EUR 0.16 per share). Corresponding figures for Q3 2002 were EUR 20.3 million and EUR 0.15 per share. Net profit of Hansabank was EUR 35.7 million in Q3 2003, which is 2.5% less than during the same period last year. Net profit of Norma in Q3 2003 was EUR 1.8 million, down 53% on y-o-y basis.
Third period for joining the 2nd pillar of the pension system ended on October 31, 2003. By the end of the third period altogether 351,164 people had joined the funded pension system, of whom 22,754 joined during the last week of October.
The percentage change of the consumer price index in Q3 2003 compared with Q2 was -0.2%, the Statistics Office reported. On average, the prices of goods and services increased by 1.2% in Q3 2003 y-o-y basis.
