The overall trading volume was rather low with only limited investor involvement. CEZ, however, enjoyed a higher-than-average volume as more than USD 4.16 mil. worth of its shares changed hands. Indeed, the stock pulled the market higher yesterday in posting its highest price since April 2000, rising 2.4%. Komercni banka gained 1.5% on no apparent news, Unipetrol surprisingly again saw a rather large volume, with more than 1 mil. shares traded. Today, the market is likely to open somewhat lower, driven down by the poor sentiment from abroad, though we believe the Czech market will continue to trade with only limited correlation to international bourses. CEZ and Unipetrol remain among our favorite domestic titles, while Komercni banka remains rather unpredictable and may consolidate at CZK 2,000. Cesky Telecom seems stable at CZK 280 at present. Ceske radiokomunikace may see its share price rise, driven by local investors and by a possible short squeeze. Volume in the SPAD trading system was down slightly yesterday, at USD 13.80 mil.
Milan Prochazka