UBS Limited, first foreign member
On April 23, this London-based firm of brokers became the first foreign member of the Amsterdam Exchanges NV. This form of (remote) membership has become possible in the wake of the introduction of the ISD and CAD directives. These directives stipulate that a securities house in possession of a so-called "European passport" need not be domiciled in the home country of the stock exchange for which membership has been requested.
High turnover
Total turnover in April amounted to 159.9 billion guilders compared with 158.8 billion guilders in March and 113.7 billion in April 1995. Share turnover reached 52.2 billion guilders versus 51.6 billion guilders in March and 24.8 billion guilders in April 1995. Bond turnover in April reached NLG 107.8 billion, with government issues accounting for 99 billion guilders. In the previous month, total bond turnover reached 107.2 billion guilders, while in April last year bond turnover of amounted to 89 billion.
Prices hit new records
The Amsterdam EOE broke record after record this month. The EOE-index closed the month at an all-time high of 554.60 points, some 4 percent higher than at end-March. All in all the Amsterdam EOE-index has climbed by some 14 percent over the first four months of this year. ING was the biggest engine behind the rise, accounting for 5.8 percent of the index's gains in April. The announcement by supermarket chain Ahold that it planned to take over U.S. store chain "Stop & Shop" resulted in a six percent rise in Ahold shares compared with March. The stock closed the month at 84.50 guilders. The month's biggest climber was the chemical concern, DSM, which ended the month at 175.00 guilders, 11.6 percent up on March. Virtually every bourse-listed stock published favourable first-quarter figures with the exception of the surprise profit fall at paper maker KNP BT. Investors were quick to show their disapproval. KNP BT shares shed 3.50 guilders on the day of the announcement, but later rallied to close the month down 50 guilder cents.
The stronger dollar was reflected in the rising share price of dollar-sensitive stocks such as Royal Dutch Petroleum, Unilever, Philips and Ahold. April also saw Heineken shares advance 0.6 percent to 385.60 guilders. This limited rise in comparison to the performance of other dollar-sensitive stocks, can partly be attributed to the fact that Heineken shares went ex-dividend halfway through the month.
The Amsterdam Midcap Index of medium-capitalized firms ended the month at a record high of 748.76 points, some 3 percent up on end-March (725.61). Temporary employment services company Randstad accounted for the biggest share of the gain, namely 7.8 percent. Its shares ended the month at 109.80 guilders, 9.8 percent up on March.
Climate remains favourable for issues
Following the earlier announcement by packaging concern Koninklijke Van Leer that it planned a stock exchange listing, Cebeco (agricultural cooperative), Alpinvest (venture capital company) and Toolex Alpha (machine tool maker for the CD industry) also announced their intention to go to the bourse.
A total of 38 million guilders in new issues were admitted to listing on the Amsterdam Exchanges NV in April. Bonds accounted for 35 million guilders of the total, with shares accounting for three million.
NEW ISSUES
Bonds in April
01.04.96 N.V. Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten, 5 1/8% '96-01,
DM 3 million
01.04.96 De Nationale Investeringsbank N.V. 6% 96-02
NLG 250 million.
03.04.96 Kredietbank Internationale Finance N.V. 7 1/4% '96 perp.
NLG 200 million
03.04.96 SNS Groep N.V., 7 1/4% '96-06 NLG 250 million.
12.04.96 Austria Republic, 6 1/4% '96-03 NLG 1.5 billion
22.04.96 Akzo Nobel N.V., 5 3/4% '96-01 NLG 300 million
24.04.96 ING Bank N.V., 1% '96-01, NLG 100 million.
25.04.96 Staat der Nederlanden, 8 1/4%, '92 II-02, NLG 1.5 billion.
Shares in April
01.04.96 N.V. Koninklijke KNP BT, secondary offering,
NLG 328,000,000
09.04.96 Gucci Group N.V., secondary offering, NLG 140,409,108.48
15.04.96 Oce-van der Grinten N.V., issue, NLG 369,150,000
22.04.96 Oce-van der Grinten N.V., issue NLG 36,915,000
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
For further information contact Thom Hoedemakers Director, Corporate Affairs The Amsterdam Exchanges NV Tel 00 31 20-523 4014 Paddy Manning St James Corporate Communications Tel 0171 436 4101