BUX Index Rose on Falling Turnover This Week

The Budapest Stock Exchange (BSE) share index rose in falling turnover this week, closing at 41,053.71 points on Friday, 621.74 points, 1.54% higher than a week ago.

The weekly turnover of the stock market was HUF 26.33 billion, compared to HUF 41.94 billion the previous week, with leading shares gaining.

In a summary sent to MTI, Equilor Investment Plc. pointed out that the BUX broke through the 41,000-point level, with the Hungarian stock market closing the last five trading days with a rise of more than 1.5%.

They recall that the central bank held its interest rate decision meeting this week, and the Hungarian base rate remained unchanged. As expected, the MNB kept the base rate at 13% at its meeting on Tuesday. In a statement issued, the central bank reiterated its previous messages that the current level of the base rate will be maintained on a permanent basis as long as there is no lasting change in inflation trends. The exceptional measures will remain in place only as long as warranted by the maintenance of market stability and developments in risk perceptions. In a background briefing after the meeting, MNB Vice President Barnabás Virág stressed that these measures will be phased out gradually.

In the Equilor summary, it was pointed out that GKI business cycle indices continued to fall. According to the October figures published on Monday, the business confidence index fell from -1.1 points to -10.1 points, with pessimism particularly strong among companies in the commercial sector. 70% of all companies surveyed are preparing for further price increases, with a major repricing likely from January 1. The economic sentiment index fell from -14.5 points to -21.9 points, while the consumer confidence index fell from -52.6 points to -55.4 points. The latter index already showed a negative outlook in previous months.

Magyar Telekom gained the most this week, 5.13%, on HUF 292 million of turnover, ending Friday's trading at HUF 297.

OTP rose 1.01%, with a turnover of HUF 13.6 billion, closing Friday at HUF 9,030.

Richter rose 1.87% on turnover of HUF 6.45 billion, closing Friday at HUF 8,180.

The share price of Mol rose by 1.55% to close the week at HUF 2,484, with a turnover of HUF 4.6 billion.

The BUMIX index of small and medium-sized shares closed the week at 3,571.49 points, up 43.87 points or 1.24% on the previous week.