Bulgarian Stocks Close Mostly Higher, Cigarette Factory Slantze Lifts Turnover

The SOFIX index, which comprises the 20 most liquid shares trading on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE), gained 0.62% to 447.27 points. The broader BG40 index, which tracks the 40 most traded shares on the bourse, added 0.52% to 122.10 points.

Total turnover, excluding block and other pre-agreed deals, surged to some 3.0 million levs ($2.3 million/1.5 million euro) from Monday's 736,000 levs.

Tuesday's volumes were lifted by trading in Slantze Stara Zagora as a total 272,140 of the company shares changed hands, surging 59.58% to 7.5 levs. The number of traded shares corresponds to a 23% stake of its share capital.

On Tuesday, advancers outnumbered fallers 34 to 27 and 12 shares ended flat.

Car batteries manufacturer MonBat was the most liquid blue chip. A total 45,439 of its stocks changed hands, losing 0.74% to 6.7 levs.

The BG-REIT, which tracks the performance of real estate investment trusts, was the only index that closed lower, shedding 0.35% to 47.72 points. The BG TotalReturn30 index, in which companies with a free float of at least 10% have equal weight, rose 0.43% to 340.62 points.

The Dnevnik 20 index, calculated by local business daily Dnevnik from the share prices of the 20 leading companies in terms of liquidity and market capitalisation, added 1.39% to 64.92 points.

(1 euro = 1.95583 Bulgarian levs)