Despite all the challenges facing the investment environment in Palestine and their reflections on the financial market indicators, the Palestinian capital market proved an opportunity to grow after maximizing the fair values of the listed companies’ shares due to accelerated growing profits in the shareholders’ equity and stabilization in the prices in return. In the second trading week of the New Year 2014; optimism, confidence and dominating the investment concept were reinforced in Palestine Stock Exchange PEX, amid a unitization in the blue chips’ roles, which in turn were previously exchanged in stabilizing Al-Quds Index in the past few years. Among the entry of the routine season of moving between the listed companies’ shares based on the return on investment estimations, and with the varied motives of creating the supply and demand in the PEX, it is obvious for the market observer that new solid and supportive price levels for Al-Quds Index and the effectible shares were established, which are hard to abandon due to the substantial factors that led to these levels.

Within this week’s trading, Al-Quds Index broke through new resistance level amid purchasing liquidity momentum that is mixed between local or foreign on the shares of both Palestine Telecommunications PALTEL and Palestine Development & Investment Company PADICO leading to achieve price gains for both shares and breaking through new price levels  in which some are historically considered physiological. In this context, the share of Palestine Development & Investment Company PADICO topped the PEX in terms of heavy activity, whereby, the transactions of PADICO was characterized with rapid price movements and orders fillings. This was supported by the entry of foreign investment funds coinciding with the general economic and political optimism atmosphere that dominates the investors. It is also good to consider the main reason for turning out to PADICO’s share that stems from the operating performance of PADICO, where, in turn led to achieve higher net income attributable to the shareholders of the parent company by 34% in 9M 2013 after an enhancement in the operating margins of the projects that started to operate in the last two years. In this context, the company’s management expected, through an official disclosure a gradual increase in these profits in the coming financial periods leading to steadily higher profits for PADICO in the coming. In parallel with the changes in the structure of PADICO’s major shareholders, the market correlation between PALTEL and PADICO attains the attention of all of the investors’ categories after what the acquisition of a strategic stake in PADICO by PALTEL led of trading momentum and new module in the market. During the week, the shares of both PALTEL and PADICO contributed for 73% of the PEX’s total trading value and 62% of the PEX’s total trading volume; topped by PADICO’s share to achieve fiery gains of 5.67% to close at the level of $1.49, approaching the new ten points level. Moreover, the 1.85% gains recorded by PALTEL during the week was an essential reason for the growth in Al-Quds Index as it is considered the most weighted in the Index. PALTEL closed at the level of JD6.04; breaking through new important physiological barrier due to the trading momentum and significant scarcity in the selling offers in depth.  

Among the active shares, the transactions of Bank of Palestine BOP- the largest bank by market capitalization- were active through recording trading value of $0.59 million, closing the share at the level of $3.15; down by 1.25% through trading in a wide range. In banks also, the share of Palestine Islamic Bank ISBK closed at the level of $1.53; up by 1.32%, through transactions worth of $0.22 million. Moreover, the transactions of Palestine Real Estate Investment Company PRICO were active to reach of $0.28 million, closing the share at the level of JD0.67; up than its last week’s closing by 4.69%. Regarding the companies’ news, announcements about holding the BOD meetings accelerate in this period of time in order to discuss the annual financial statements for the year 2013 prior to disclosure. Within the substantial news, the BOD of The Arab Islamic Bank AIB held a meeting on 12/01/2014 and approved completing the shortage in the unsubscribed paid up capital of $1.28 million/shares through allocation to three of the board of directors’ members.