MASI Falls 0.29% as 12 Sectors Decline; Small Caps Edge Higher

The Casablanca Stock Exchange ended Thursday's session in negative territory, with the benchmark MASI index slipping 0.29% to close at 17,667.10 points, down from 17,717.78 the previous day. The MASI 20 index of large caps fared worse, shedding 0.43% to 1,305.77, while the MASI ESG index declined 0.36% to 1,260.91. The only bright spot among the main gauges was the small and mid-cap index, which inched up 0.04% to 1,749.04.

Among individual stocks, Métallique Imiter led the decliners with a drop of 4.59%, followed by Fini Brossette down 3.05%. On the winners' side, M2M Group jumped 6.92% and Snep gained 3.59%.

Sector performance was mixed: 12 out of 23 sectors ended lower, with forestry and paper falling the most at 1.92%, while finance and financial services lost 1.25%. In contrast, chemicals surged 3.11% and leisure and hotels advanced 2.96%, topping the gainers' list.

Total trading volume reached 174.12 million dirhams. Attijariwafa bank was the most actively traded stock by value, at 37.60 million dirhams, followed by Managem at 18.32 million. The exchange's total market capitalization stood at 1.014 trillion dirhams, with Managem remaining the largest company by market cap at 150.38 billion dirhams, ahead of Attijariwafa bank at 145.22 billion.

Chemicals Surge, Forestry and Paper Lead Losers

Sector Divergence: Defensive Slip While Chemicals and Travel Jump

The day's losses were concentrated in large-cap and commodity-linked names, dragging the headline indices lower. Forestry and paper, down 1.92%, and financial services, off 1.25%, were the biggest weight on the MASI. Meanwhile, chemicals stocks soared 3.11% and leisure and hotels gained 2.96%, suggesting that investor interest rotated into sectors with positive short-term demand signals, possibly linked to tourism or industrial activity.

Heavyweights Attijariwafa and Managem Dictate Trading Flow

Attijariwafa bank dominated value traded, a reminder of its liquidity and systemic importance on the Casablanca bourse. Managem, the largest company by market capitalization, also saw robust turnover. The fact that both heavyweights ended the session mixed (Attijariwafa's specific price was not highlighted in the session data, but its sector fell) contributed to the overall index decline, while the small-cap index's marginal rise indicates that investors are selectively looking beyond the biggest names.