The forex market and stock exchange were yesterday, once again, rocked by a new wave of unrest that reverberated across western markets, as names of yet more banks affected by the mortgage credit crisis in the US emerged, after the initial stability witnessed on Wednesday.
The RON lost around 1% in just one day, according to the exchange rate calculated by the NBR (National Bank of Romania), whilst the interbank forex market witnessed an even higher correction. The main index of the stock exchange market, the BET fell 1.8%, whilst losses for SIFs (Financial Investment Companies) doubled.
The market's total capitalisation dropped by around 800 million euros yesterday, with the decrease further amplified by the depreciation of the RON against the euro.
Therefore, the international context comes to prove that the RON can depreciate just as fast as it can appreciate: from a minimum of 3.1204 RON per euro reached on July 24, it returned yesterday to an exchange rate level of 3.2260 RON/EUR, with a correction of 10 bani (1 RON equals 100 bani). The trading range rapidly exceeded 3.223 RON, whilst the maximum quote at which operations were performed stood at 3.2325 RON/EUR.
The continued decline of the international markets and the bad news on the domestic market, such as the intention of the PSD (Social Democratic Party) to submit a censure motion, which could prompt early elections or deepen the current account deficit, made buyers keep their distance from the Stock Exchange yesterday, with the market experiencing one of its worst days yet this year.
In addition, yesterday, the majority of listed shares saw significant losses again, amid a lack of buyers. Investors did not view the drop in quotes as an opportunity to buy, with the value of the transactions maintaining within the limits of an average day's trading - at around 19 million euros.
The SIFs, which usually see the highest fluctuations on the market, lost almost 4% in value yesterday, with their index, BET-FI already falling 18% against last month's high point.
The largest listed company, Petrom, is set to announce its financial results for the first half of the year today, which could affect the market within the next few days. Petrom closed the trading day yesterday at 0.515 RON/share, 1% less than on Friday and 14% below last month's high point.
The main listed banks, BRD and Banca Transilvania registered higher than expected results, which helped stabilise the market for a few days, with declines, however, continuing.
Risk aversion has rapidly spread over the international capital markets, causing European stock exchanges to witness declines at the beginning of the trading session, after the decline of the US capital market also extended to Asia.
The Nikkei index fell by over 2%, to its lowest level in eight months.
The uncertainties and suspicions related to the large number of banks affected by the American crisis have led to visible drops in stock quotes for worldwide financial giants such as UBS and Deutsche Bank.
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