The SEMDEX saw little movement today, with MCBG, ENL, and ALTEO making gains while several ENL-associated companies faced losses.
Banking stock MCBG inched up 0.3% to reach MUR 377.00 on 32.7k shares traded and SBMH remained steady at MUR 4.82 on 1.47m shares traded.
While ENL advanced 1.0% to MUR 19.85, its associated companies like NMH dropped 1.9% to MUR 10.30, SWAN GENERAL dipped 1.1% to MUR 450.00, ASCENCIA fell 0.8% to MUR 17.60, and ROGERS decreased 0.5% to MUR 33.00.
ALTEO stood out as the top gainer today, with a 1.7% increase, reaching MUR 9.80.
MCBG led trading activity today, representing 30% of today's turnover, followed by SBMH (17%) and AFREXIM (13%).
International Markets
US stocks closed mostly lower on Thursday, with the S&P 500 extending its losing streak to five days, the longest so far this year.
After market close, Netflix released its Q1 earnings report. While subscriber growth surpassed expectations, the company's revenue forecast for the current quarter fell short of analysts' predictions.
European stocks gained ground yesterday, with the STOXX 600 index rising 0.2%, as the earnings season continued to unfold. The industrial sector led the charge, with Swiss engineering giant ABB reaching a record high after exceeding earnings expectations.
Asian stocks mostly rose on Thursday following US Treasury Secretary Yellen's acknowledgment of concerns about the dollar's strength for Japan and South Korea during the trilateral meeting. South Korea's KOSPI led the gains with a 2.0% increase, while the HANG SENG in Hong Kong gained 0.8% and Japan's NIKKEI 225 climbed 0.3%.
Regional Markets
Kenyan stocks dropped on Thursday, weighed down by sinking share prices of heavyweight Safaricom and banking institutions ABSA Kenya and Co-Operative Bank of Kenya.
Egypt's blue-chip EGX30 plunged 4.5% on Thursday. Broad selling gripped the market, with almost all listed companies experiencing losses. This included the leading lender Commercial International Bank, which fell 2.6%, and Egyptian Real Estate Group, which dropped 4.7%.
FX & Commodities
Gold prices climbed on Thursday supported by ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Crude oil prices extended their decline on Thursday. This follows data from the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday indicating that stockpiles rose for a fourth consecutive week, raising concerns about weaker-than-expected demand growth.