No transactions took place on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) last week.

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On 17 November 1998, the KASE will begin auctioning off the state's stake in the Eastern Kazakhstan Copper and Chemical Plant. (Kazakhstanskaya Pravda)

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The National Securities Commission (NSC) has issued a report on the state of Kazakhstan's stock market from March-September 1998. The traded volume of Kazakhstan's stock market over the reported period totalled KZT 3.08bn (USD 38m). Purchases accounted for 97.4% of the total number of transactions. During this period, the most popular shares were the common and preferred shares of Kazakhtelecom, Kazakhmys (a copper corporation), Halyk Savings Bank, Kazzinc, and the oil companies Aktombemunaigas and Mangystaumunaigas. Since mid-August, the number of transactions has fallen dramatically due to the turmoil in Russia. The shares in Kazakhtelecom have been relatively steady both in number of deals and in price. The price per share ranged between KZT 1,323.5 (USD 17.3) in March and KZT 1,748.0 (USD 22) in September. Of the traded shares, the most liquid were the common and preferred shares in Atyrau Oil Refinery and the oil company Embamunaigas, the preferred shares in Aluminium of Kazakhstan, and the common shares in Kazkommertsbank. The number of shares purchased has declined since March. According to the NSC, statistics show that the average transaction volume decreased to KZT 57,700 in the 3Q from KZT 401,900 in March. This may be explained by the fact that originally, brokers bought shares from large holders. As those sources depleted, brokers started buying from minor market operators. Apart from shares in large companies, the most popular among market players have been shares in the medium-sized Bukhtarma cement company and the Margarine Plant. (Reuters)