- Trade levels in equities and ETFs maintained at Q1 levels but turnover falls by 19.7%
- Irish companies trading on ISE markets raise €2,363m in Q2
- Trading activity in Irish Government securities during Q2 consistent with Q1
- Challenging conditions internationally continue to impact fund and debt securities listings
Trade levels in equities and ETFs maintained at Q1 levels but turnover falls by 19.7%
The statistics show that over a half million trades in equities and ETFs were recorded in the second quarter [542k] maintaining the levels recorded during Q1 [554k] on the Irish Stock Exchange [ISE]. The daily average trade figures on the ISE’s markets were up slightly to an average of 8,882 trades per day [Q1: 8,786 trades] due to the lower number of trading days in the second period [61 days compared to 63 days in Q1]. While the number of trades in Irish companies and ETFs was maintained throughout Q2, turnover fell by 19.7% to €8.3bn [Q12011: €10.4bn] with daily average turnover in equities and ETFs falling by 17.6% in the same period.
Irish companies trading on ISE markets raise €2,463m in Q2
Six companies trading on the Main Securities Market and Enterprise Securities Market raised €2,363m in the second quarter of 2011 bringing to €2,463m the amount of money raised by Irish companies so far in 2011. The most significant fund raising was by AIB plc which raised €2,308m during Q2.
One new company, Continental Farmers Group plc, joined the Enterprise Securities Market in June. It was valued at €42.7m on admission and raised €16.7m as part of its initial public offering.
Market capitalisation of companies included in the ISEQ indices rose by €2.8bn during the quarter to €50.9bn at the end of June 2011, an increase of 5.9%.
Trading activity in Irish Government securities during Q2 consistent with Q1
Turnover in Irish Government securities was consistent from Q1 to Q2, with €10.6bn turnover recorded in both periods. The level of trading was also steady at over 6,500 trades, with daily average trades showing a small increase of 3.6% in the second quarter. Turnover and trade statistics were down just over 85% and 56% respectively from the record levels achieved in 2010 reflecting the Irish Government’s decision to exit the bond markets in Q4 2010.
The market capitalisation of Irish Government bonds and Treasury bills at the end of June 2011 was €64.7bn, a fall of 6.8% during the quarter and 13.6% on the value recorded at the end of2010 [Q4 2010: €74.9bn].
Performance of ISEQ equity and bond indices
Most ISEQ equity indices rose in Q2 and showed a positive return in the first half of 2011. The leading performer was the ISEQ general which increased in value by 4% during Q2 and has shown growth of 5.7% in the first six months of 2011. However the ESM index, which represents companies admitted to trading on the Enterprise Securities Market, decreased by 11.2% during the second quarter and has fallen by 18.8% since the end of 2010.
The performance of the ISEQ bond indices in 2011 continued the downward trend evident in the latter half of 2010. The fall in the all bond index measured 6.8% in the second quarter, while thevalue of the other ISEQ bond indices declined between 3.7% and 8.9% from the figures recorded at the end of March 2011.
Challenging conditions internationally continue to impact fund and debt securitieslistings
The impact of challenging conditions in international capital markets continues to affect the level of fund and debt securities admitted to listing on the ISE’s markets in 2011. While new listings of debt tranches continued the positive trend evident in the early part of 2011, rising a further 10.2% on Q1 levels [764 compared to 693], the number of new listings of funds and sub funds fell to 84 in Q2 [Q1: 97].
At the end of June 2011, the number of funds and sub funds listed on the ISE was 2,984 [2010:3,009] while tranches of debt securities amounted to 21,917 [2010: 22,510].