The PX-50 index was marginally lower yesterday, down by 0.2% to 505.2 points, driven by losses in Erste Bank and Philip Morris CR stock. Erste Bank lost 2.4% on a fairly low volume, following its trading on the Vienna stock exchange. Philip Morris CR lost 1.9% on profit taking, the stock is trading ex-dividend rights. These losses were mostly offset by the gains of Cesky Telecom and CEZ, both of which rose by 0.7% on fairly low volumes. The most actively traded stock was KB, down marginally by 0.2% despite positive comments from an analyst at Morgan Stanley, which initiated coverage of KB with an "overweight" investment recommendation and a 12-month target price of CZK 2,486. Overall, the traded volume on the SPAD system was USD 13 mil. on Tuesday. The Czech market will likely be defensive again today, and we expect only a marginally positive reaction to the current bullish sentiment on worldwide markets.
Silvio Kotarac