Helsinki Stock Exchange Begins Lateral Trading on Friday

The first Friday of July opened with the general index of the Helsinki Stock Exchange at 10,102.40 points a few minutes after the opening bell. The most traded stock on Friday morning was Nordea, which saw a 0.4 percent decrease in its stock price at the opening. This decline was attributed to a trial announcement in Denmark related to an old case of money laundering prevention.

The Danish authorities have been investigating Nordea’s anti-money laundering control procedures from 2015 and earlier. As a result, the National Special Crimes Unit of the Danish Police, NSK, announced that they will be taking legal action against the company. Nordea has expressed disagreement with the legal assessment and stated that they have three external legal assessments supporting their position.

In the first quarter of 2019, Nordea made a provision for anti-money laundering matters and has been continuously evaluating the provision since then. Prior investigations by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority did not find evidence of money laundering or intentional violations of regulations. The case was later transferred to the Danish Public Prosecutor’s Office for further investigation.

In other news, the most recent entrant to the stock market, Kalmar, saw a 3.2 percent increase in its share price, while Nightingale Health experienced a 1.3 percent decline. Additionally, Relais Group announced a new acquisition by its Swedish subsidiary STS Sydhamnen’s Trailer Service of the Swede Team Workshop Sweden.

Finnair, the carrier company, reported an increase in passenger numbers for June compared to the previous year. The company’s shares also opened with a 3.2 percent increase in trading. Finnair saw growth in traffic across various regions, including Asia and North America, while facing a decrease in the Middle East.

Overall, the first Friday of July saw a mix of positive and negative developments in various sectors, from banking and stock markets to airline traffic and acquisitions in the vehicle aftermarket. Investors were keeping a close eye on these developments to assess their impact on the market.