MSE Equity Price Index snaps 5-day losing streak
MSE Equity Price Index Snaps 5-Day Losing Streak: Sliema Traders Trade Tension for Pastizzi Cheers
By 9:15 a.m. on Thursday, the usually hushed trading floor of the Malta Stock Exchange in Castille Square looked more like a village festa. Screens flickered green, phones rang like church bells, and someone had even smuggled in a tray of steaming pastizzi from Serkin in Rabat. After five consecutive sessions of red arrows that had left local investors clutching their coffee cups tighter than their rosary beads, the MSE Equity Price Index finally bounced—up 1.34 % to 3,780.56 points. The relief was audible; you could almost hear the collective exhale over the drone of the air-conditioning.
The rebound was led by heavyweight Bank of Valletta, which surged 2.1 % after rumours (swiftly denied yet enthusiastically traded upon) of a possible tie-up with a fintech outfit from Luxembourg. Malta International Airport added 1.8 % on the back of record May passenger numbers—no surprise to anyone who has queued behind 200 teenagers flying off to their first “lads’ holiday” in Magaluf. Meanwhile, small-cap star Malta Properties Company rose 3.7 % after unveiling plans to convert a dilapidated Valletta townhouse into 16 micro-apartments aimed at digital nomads. “We’re calling it ‘Baroque & Broadband’,” quipped CEO Roberta Tabone, drawing laughter from the brokers huddled around her desk.
Locals felt the shift in mood beyond the bourse’s glass doors. At Café Cordina, retired teacher Carmenu Micallef, 71, ordered a second ħelwa tat-Tork to celebrate the recovery of his modest BOV shareholding. “I bought 500 shares in 1993 with my first teacher’s stipend,” he told Hot Malta, waving a spoon like a conductor’s baton. “When the price drops, my knees start playing the maracas. Today, I feel like I’m 25 again—minus the hair.”
The losing streak had weighed heavier than a limestone block on the national psyche. Maltese households hold equities at one of the highest rates in the eurozone—part inheritance culture, part side-hustle, part national sport. From barbers in Birkirkara to fishermen in Marsaxlokk, everyone has an uncle who once turned a lira into a villa in Mellieħa. So when the index slid 4 % over five sessions, talk-radio lines lit up like festa fireworks. “I had callers asking if they should sell their goats and buy bitcoin,” laughed Maria Spiteri, host of RTK’s morning show. “I told them goats at least give milk.”
Tourism operators also exhaled. The airport’s rally signals continued arrivals, crucial for an island still nursing bruises from 2020’s travel collapse. “We track the MSE like we track the weather,” said Josef Borg, who runs a fleet of vintage Maltese buses ferrying cruise passengers from the Grand Harbour to Mdina. “Green on the screen means green on the road.” His drivers were even humming along to the Eurovision playlist; Loreen’s “Tattoo” never sounded so bullish.
Yet beneath the pastizzi-fuelled optimism, caution lingers like the smell of fried ricotta. Inflation across the eurozone remains stubborn, and rising interest rates could still dent the property-heavy index. “We’re not out of the storm,” warned economist Stephanie Calleja from her office overlooking the Sliema ferries. “But Maltese investors are hardy. They’ve weathered Ottoman sieges, World War II, and the 2008 crash. A five-day dip? That’s just a long weekend.”
By closing bell, the screens glowed steady green, and the traders spilled onto Republic Street, swapping market jargon for weekend plans—some heading to Għanafest in Argotti, others to a football match where Floriana faces Ħamrun. The index had snapped its losing streak, but more importantly, the Maltese spirit had snapped back to its default setting: resilient, irreverent, and always ready for the next round of pastizzi.
As the sun set over the bastions, a broker raised his takeaway coffee in salute: “To the next five days—may they be as sweet as kannoli.”
