Monday, June 20, 2011

Bethel Finances: Banks continue to rise

www.bethelfinance.com

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) was flat today. The Tel Aviv 25 Index edged down 0.08% to 1,209.25 points, the Tel Aviv 100 Index fell 0.40% to 1,091.26 points, and the TechBlue 50 Index fell 0.88% to 262.81 points. Turnover was NIS 1.87 billion.

The Tel Aviv 25 Index was flat for the second consecutive day, with the exception of the Banking and Oil and Gas indices. Futures contracts pointed to losses at the opening on Wall Street, which materialized.

In the bond market, both long-term Shahar unlinked government bonds rose to 0.1%, but long-term Galil CPI-linked bonds fell by up to 0.3%. The corporate bond benchmark Tel-Bond 20 Index fell 0.27%.

In the foreign currency market, the shekel-dollar representative exchange rate fell 0.12% to 3.459/$, but the shekel-euro representative exchange rate rose 0.43% to NIS 4.927/€.

In the stock market, holding companies on the Tel Aviv 25 Index stood out today. IDB Holding Corp. Ltd. (TASE:IDBH) unit Discount Investment Corporation (TASE: DISI) fell 4.9% for the biggest drop on the index, while Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG) fell 3.4%, and Israel Corporation (TASE: ILCO) fell 1.8%.

Israel Corp. subsidiary Israel Chemicals Ltd. (TASE: ICL) rose 1.2%. Commenting on the share's 16% drop so far this year, Meitav Investment House Ltd. today reiterated its "Buy" recommendation, saying, "the unusual resilience of corn prices, the growth potential over the next two years, and the weakness of the dollar, we see no reason to withdraw."

The Banking Index rose another 0.4% today, driven by a 0.9% gain by Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI) on the day's largest turnover of NIS 124 million, and 0.8% gain by Bank Hapoalim (TASE: POLI). Bank Leumi today announced that it will continue negotiations to acquire 20.7% of Tnuva Food Industries Ltd., together with private investors, from Mivtach Shamir Holdings Ltd. (TASE:MISH). Trading in Mivtach Shamir is suspended.

In real estate, Gazit-Globe Ltd. (TASE: GLOB) rose another 2.3% today.

Biomed companies Pluristem Therapeutics Ltd. (Nasdaq:PSTI; DAX: PJT: PLTR) rose 10.3% after announcing a licensing agreement with United Therapeutics Corporation (Nasdaq: UTHR), and Prolor Biotech Inc. (AMEX: PBTH; TASE: PBTH) rose fell 1.3% after announcing plans for a clinical trial for its growth-hormone on children.

Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (Nasdaq: TSEM; TASE: TSEM) rose 0.6%, after announcing a deal with Chinese fabless IC design company Southwest Integrated Circuit Design Co. Ltd. (SWID).

Small-cap defense company Rabintex Industries Ltd. (TASE: RABN) rose 15.4%, after announcing a $7 million order, and within an hour announcing that it will not be able to meet an upcoming bond payment.

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