The volume of stock trading at Yangon Stock Exchange (YSX) dropped for ten consecutive months of this year

The volume of shares traded on the Yangon Stock Exchange (YSX) in October has sunk to the lowest level of K673.5 million for ten consecutive months this year, with 85,630 shares, the YSX’s monthly report indicated. In January 2020, 196,836 shares worth K1.25 billion were traded on the exchange while 188,919 shares, with an estimated value of K1.48 billion, were traded on the exchange in February and 228,913 shares valued K1.42 billion were traded in March respectively. It touched the lowest of K902 million with 173,808 shares in April. It rose to K1.2 billion with 200,416 shares being traded in May. The share volumes traded on the exchange surged to 221,682 in June, with estimated value K1.3 billion and then, it fell to K1 billion with 125,137 shares in July. In August, the exchange witnessed a low of stock trading value at K747.5 million, with 118,850 shares traded. The value slightly rose to K838.67 million with 85,237 shares on the business in September, the exchange’s monthly report showed.
At present, shares of six listed companies — First Myanmar Investment (FMI), Myanmar Thilawa SEZ Holdings (MTSH), Myanmar Citizens Bank (MCB), First Private Bank (FPB), TMH Telecom Public Co. Ltd (TMH) and the Ever Flow River Group Public Co. Ltd (EFR) is being traded on the exchange. In October, the share prices of FMI were closed at K9,900 per unit, MTSH at K3,650, MCB at K8,200, FPB at K22,000, TMH at K2,750 and EFR at K3,550 respectively.

The stock markets worldwide have reported their largest declines since the 2008 financial crisis. Similarly, the local equities market is also scared by the COVID-19 crash, a market observer points out. At the present time, people are putting money in savings, rather than making investment amid the COVID-19 crisis, he added. Next, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Myanmar (SECM) allowed foreigners to invest in the local equity market in March 2020. Foreigners have held 55,021 shares in the equity market as of 3 November. Amid the COVID-19 crisis, Myanmar’s securities market has been able to continue operating without stopping trading even for one day is symbolic of the efforts of all market participants, Mr Koichiro Miyahara, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tokyo Stock Exchange, gave a remark to YSX EXPO 2020 online event on 12 September.
Furthermore, YSX is carrying out necessary actions to establish the new Pre-Listing Board, in addition to the existing market (Main Board), with a view to increasing the number of listed companies, U Maung Maung Win, Deputy Minister for Planning, Finance and Industry and Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Myanmar delivered the remark to YSX EXPO 2020 online event on 12 September.
The YSX was launched three years ago to improve the private business sector. It disseminates rules and regulations regarding the stock exchange and knowledge of share trading through stock investment seminars. To boost the trading, the YSX had doubled its stock trade matching time from two to four per day last year. The exchange launched seven times matching per day on 26 March 2020.
Since 2017, it has held promotional events to attract new investors and encourage existing investors to trade more actively. The stock exchange has also sought the government’s support to get more public companies to participate in the stock market and help more institutional investors, such as financing companies, investment banks, and insurance companies, to emerge.
A total of 2.4 million shares worth K13.39 billion were traded on the YSX in 2019, a significant increase compared to the previous year, according to the annual report released by the exchange.—Ko Htet (Translated by Ei Myat Mon)

(The Global New Light of Myanmar: https://www.gnlm.com.mm/stock-trading-value-on-ysx-drops-for-10-consecutive-months/ )

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