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The index of the Helsinki stock market (OMH25) this week reached 2777.95, which is a decrease of 0.96% comparing with the previous week. Even though the results of this week are almost neutral, due to bearish trends around the globe the Year-To-Date result of the index is very poor: it decreased by 10.20%. Of 25 stocks, 11 showed positive week results after the closing on Friday while 14 fell down. The winners of the week were Konecranes (KCR1V), Outokumpu Oyj (OUT1V), and UPM-Kymmene Oyj (UMP1V) – these securities gained over 3% in value. On the flip side, Wartsilla (WRTBV), Nordea Bank (NDA1V) and Fortum (FUM1V) experienced the largest decreases in the price of their shares.

 

Konecranes (KCR1V), a world-leading provider of lifting solutions and services, is the leader of the week with an increase of 3.78% and the closing price of 21.18. The stock has been recovering steadily since 22nd of January. The company is going to publish its annual report on Friday, so an increase in price might be a reflection of positive expectations towards the results, which is likely to increase even more if the financial results will turn out to be satisfactory.

 

Another big winner this week was Outokumpu Oyj (OUT1V), an international stainless steel company, with a 3.65% increase over the week and a huge leap in stock-price on Friday. The stock price had hit rock bottom last Wednesday (17.65 EUR), but the situation has been rapidly improving since then (Figure 1). The first factor that seems to have reversed a three-month downward trend was a major technical breakthrough announcement – an important business partner found new use for Outokumpu’s stainless steel that increases the efficiency of oil refineries. Furthermore, the annual report and investment plans announced on Thursday added momentum to the increase in stock-value. The sales volumes this Thursday and Friday were 5 million and 5.4 million respectively. It seems that this stock will be very profitable in the nearest future, especially if stakeholders do not change their minds over the weekend.

 

Figure 1.

UPM-Kymmene Oyj (UMP1V) is the third biggest winner in the OMXH25 this week with a 3.44% gain. UPM is the leading manufacturer of various forest products ranging from printing paper to wood products. The stock price of this company has been steadily increasing since Monday mainly because the financial results for 2007 will be published on Tuesday. However, even if the results turn out to be very good one should not expect a long-lasting price growth. UPM has been on a downward trend for just over a year now and good financial results will probably not be enough to break such a strong tendency. Nevertheless, a short-term investment in this stock might pay off.

 

The biggest loser of this week is Fortum Oyj (FUM1V). The company index decreased by 7.95% this week and reached 27.05 EUR per share on Friday evening. The company value has been decreasing during the week and only on Friday it recovered with a slight increase. This was mainly influenced by the announcement of financial statement of year 2007. Moreover, the ROC indicator has been increasing steadily and MACD has approached zero, showing the possibility of future increase. So, it is advisable to invest in this share and wait for the future profit.

 

Another company that showed negative result this week is Nordea Bank AB(NDA1V). Its index has decreased by 5.96%. The negative trend that has started from the middle of December 2007 is seemed to be over. As the moving averages indicator has approached zero, it is anticipated to gain from the growth of this index value in the future.

© 2007 SSE Riga Investment Fund