Market turnover at the Malta Stock Exchange reached record levels in 1999 due mainly to a sharp increase in equity business. During the year the exchange greatly enhanced its international status after being officially accepted as a full member of the Federation of International Stock Exchanges, the FIBV. New listings, apart from government stocks, included two Gasan bond issues as well as a bond issue by Corinthia Finance plc. The listing of Collective Investment Schemes also proceeded apace with the number of schemes listed reaching 118. A number of important amendments were also approved by the council and introduced to the bye-laws of the exchange during the course of the past year, including a new set of listing rules intended for young developing companies.
Market turnover on the Malta Stock Exchange continued to increase during the past year to reach an all time high of Lm190.5m. This represented a Lm55.7m (41 per cent) increase on the previous peak of Lm134.8m recorded in 1998. This expansion was mainly due to a strong increase in equity business which reached Lm137.5m against the Lm21.1m of the previous year.
At this level, equity business accounted for 70 per cent of total market value in 1999 against 16 per cent the year before. While the transfer of government's shareholding in Mid-Med Bank plc to HSBC played a significant role in pushing up these figures, this increase reflected higher levels of business across the board in the equities sector. Prices reflected the high levels of demand and the MSE ordinary share index moved up from a 1998 close of 1211 to end the year at 3278.
The volume of government securities traded, which had risen slightly in 1998 to Lm112m, dropped sharply this year to just under Lm51m, while trading in corporate bonds, went up by about a third to Lm2m this year. All the year's business was carried out in 16,839 deals, almost double the 8,507 deals of the previous year.
The market capitalisation of securities listed on the exchange, excluding Collective Investment Schemes, reached a total of Lm1,521m, up from Lm991m in 1998. Of these, Lm697m represented the capitalisation of the government bond market, Lm793m that of the equity market and Lm31m of the corporate bond market.
The number of account holders held on record in the Central Registration System of the exchange fell from 101,556 last year to 98,754 by the end of December 1999. These accounts represent 48,996 individual holders across all registers, down from 50,381 last year.
A total of Lm125.6m worth of Malta government stocks were listed on the Malta Stock Exchange during the course of 1999 bringing the total number of listed government stocks up to 47. During this period, listed corporate bonds increased by Lm17m following the listing of bonds issued by Gasan Finance plc and by Corinthia Finance plc.
Also 25 new investment funds were admitted to the official list in 1999. As a result the total number of funds listed on the exchange reached 118 up from 97 funds at the end of 1998.
In November, the Malta Stock Exchange achieved the status of full membership within the Federation of International Stock Exchanges (FIBV). The exchange achieved membership following a detailed review by an FIBV delegation comprising the secretary general of FIBV and experts from the London Stock Exchange and the Mexico Stock Exchange who visited Malta in order to examine the operations and procedures adopted by the Malta exchange.
Towards the end of the year, the exchange introduced Chapter 10 of the bye-laws dealing with the listing requirements for what is known as the "Alternative Companies List". These requirements are designed for those companies which are not eligible to apply for listing under the existing requirements of the bye-laws.
 
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