Moroccan equities ended the trading session in Casablanca with the Moroccan All Shares down 0.40% as losses concentrated in the Utilities, Banking and Mining sectors pressured the market.
Market close - At the close of trade in Casablanca the Moroccan All Shares fell 0.40%.
Top performers - The session's strongest performers on the Moroccan All Shares were Societe des Boissons du Maroc SA (SBM), which advanced 6.63% or 135.00 points to finish at 2,170.00. Auto Nejma (NEJ) added 5.50% or 266.00 points to close at 5,100.00, and CTM (CTM) rose 5.00% or 42.40 points to end the day at 890.00.
Largest declines - Among the weakest names, Balima (BAL) fell 5.98% or 12.00 points to close at 188.60. Agma Lahlou-Tazi (AGM) dropped 5.13% or 368.00 points to finish at 6,805.00, while Maroc Leasing (MLE) decreased 4.97% or 18.40 points to 351.50.
Market breadth - Declining stocks outnumbered advancing stocks on the Casablanca Stock Exchange by 34 to 24, with 2 issues ending unchanged.
Notable technical note - Shares of Balima (BAL) fell to 52-week lows, declining 5.98% or 12.00 to 188.60.
Commodities and currencies - In related markets, crude oil for August delivery was up 0.03% or 0.02 to $68.71 a barrel, while Brent for September delivery rose 0.04% or 0.03 to $72.15 a barrel. The August Gold Futures contract gained 0.75% or 30.90 to trade at $4,156.60 a troy ounce.
On the currency front EUR/MAD moved lower by 0.26% to 10.69, and USD/MAD was higher by 0.07% at 9.38.
Dollar index - The US Dollar Index Futures was trading up 0.21% at 100.83 at the referenced time.
Contextual summary - Monday's session displayed a mixed picture beneath a modest overall decline. A handful of stocks recorded strong gains while several others, including an issuer at a 52-week low, posted sizeable drops. Market breadth favored declines, and commodity and FX moves were relatively small in magnitude.
What to watch - Given the concentration of losses in the Utilities, Banking and Mining sectors and the presence of several single-stock moves, monitoring sector-level flows and follow-on activity in the names that moved sharply could be useful for assessing near-term market direction.
Data points in this report reflect the prices and percentage moves cited at the close of the Casablanca trading session and in the referenced commodities and currency instruments.