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The ISEQ sub-indices also reached their lifetime highs in December with the ISEQ Financial, General, Small Cap, ITEQ and ISEQ 20 indices gaining 25%, 30%, 34%, 44%, 28% respectively this year. The market capitalisation of companies on the ISE grew to 119.3 billion in 2006, an increase of 26% on the prior year total of 94.7 billion. The ISE saw equity turnover grow to 129.2 billion in 2006, a 19% increase on the 2005 total of 108.8 billion and average daily turnover for 2006 was 511 million. The fourth quarter saw a 29% increase in average daily turnover to 555 million when compared to the 2005 daily average of 430 million. Five companies account for 61% of the ISEQ Index market capitalisation - AIB, BoI, CRH, Anglo Irish and Ryanair. Brokers' estimates suggest that 40% of Irish equities are held by Irish resident companies, funds or individuals; 25% held by US residents; up to 20% by UK residents and the remaining 15% Rest of World. The number of equity transactions being undertaken on the ISE also grew strongly. 900,900 deals were done in 2006 representing growth of 14% compared to 792,120 in 2005. Quarter four saw an increase of 17% in the daily average number of transactions to 3,652 from 3,131 in 2005. The ISE says that these figures emphasise the continued strength of both institutional and private client interest in Irish equities. In addition trading membership of the Exchange continues to grow with Danske Bank, Interactive Brokers and Credit Agricole Cheuvreux joining the ISE in 2006. The ISE admitted the first Exchange Traded Fund over Irish equities in 2005. The ISEQ 20 Exchange Traded Fund provides investors with the opportunity to invest easily, at low cost and via a single security in a portfolio of twenty of the most liquid and largest Irish equities. It performed well in 2006: assets under management in the ISEQ 20 ETF increased 72% from 29.4 million to 50.6 million and the trading price increased 28% from 14.68 to 18.74 over the year. In 2006 18.1 million shares were traded with an aggregate value of 285 million. This is another outstanding performance by the Irish market and the figures show clearly that the Irish Stock Exchange is an attractive location for investors who wish to trade in Irish equities. Our Irish Enterprise Exchange (IEX) market has been very well received and we expect a further eight new entrants in 2007. We also expect at least one new entrant to the Official List this year. The past year has seen the Exchange further strengthen its market, product and service offerings, as well as consolidating its position as the global leader for the listing of investment funds and the leader in Europe for debt securities. We look forward to further growth in 2007 in all sectors of our business. ISE Chief Executive Tom Healy stated. Ten new companies joined the Exchange in 2006, raising a total of 3.7 billion. Aer Lingus Plc had a successful entry to the Official List market on 27th September 2006, raising 1.17 billion. Nine new companies joined the Irish Enterprise Exchange (IEX) raising a total of 941 million bringing the number of companies on IEX at year end to twenty three. The market capitalisation of IEX grew by 190% in 2006, rising from 847 million at the start of the year to 2.46 billion at year end. Turnover on IEX has increased 116% in 2006 from 584 million to 1.26 billion. The nine new companies that listed on IEX in 2006 are: AGI Therapeutics Plc, Amarin Corporation Plc, Blackrock Corporation Plc, Calyx Group Plc, Finance Ireland Plc, Norkom Group Plc, Petroceltic International Plc, Petroneft Resources Plc and Siteserv Plc
The ISE says that 2006 saw it "consolidate its position as the world leader for the listing of investment funds." Following another year of growth, total funds and sub-funds listed at 31st December 2006 stood at over 4,300 while the total number of classes listed exceeded 9,600. The final quarter of 2006 saw a strong finish to the year with the listing of 205 new funds and sub-funds. Notable new listings included offerings by iShares, Mercer, Marshall Wace, Goldman Sachs and HSBC. Debt securities experienced very good growth on the ISE in 2006, with a significant increase in listings compared to 2005. The Irish Stock Exchange is now widely recognised as the pre-eminent stock exchange for the listing of asset backed securities in Europe. At 31st December 2006, there were 2,883 Debt entities listed. There were 988 new Debt entities listed in 2006, representing a 45% increase compared to the number of new listings in 2005. In 2006 there has been considerable growth in the number of corporate debt listings with notable listings including Wal-Mart, Banco Industrial Do Brasil S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, EBS Building Society, Fiat, Manpower Inc and Porsche. The Exchange has also seen a considerable increase in the number of Latin American and Russian deals. New medium term note programme listings have come from Anglo Irish Bank Corporation plc, Banca CR Firenze S.p.A., BNP Paribas, Morgan Stanley, Depfa Bank plc, Lehman Brothers and SunTrustbank. The Exchange expects further growth in its specialist listings businesses (both Debt and Funds) in 2007, consolidating its leading position in both markets. The strength of the Irish Exchequer and the further consolidation of the now relatively modest national debt continued to impact the Irish Government bond market. Turnover in Government bonds for 2006 totalled 37.5 billion, a 27% decrease on 2005. © Copyright 2007 by Finfacts.com |
