THE JAMAICA Stock Exchange (JSE) in a statement released yesterday said it was disappointed that the Gleaner Company Limited did not adhere to the Exchange's rules regarding communication of announcements.
The Gleaner reported on Wednesday that it had, through its United Kingdom subsidiary, purchased full ownership of the Voice newspaper, a weekly newspaper targeting the Caribbean and African markets.
But the JSE noted that Rule 410 states, inter alia, "Prior to or concurrently with any public announcement every listed company shall forward to the exchange notification of all dividends, profits, issues, expansion programme and any other changes, including any information necessary to enable share/stockholders to apprise the position of the company."
Acting general manager, Marlene Street, wrote to the newspaper's managing director Oliver Clarke expressing disappointment that "this major news was communicated to the Jamaica Stock Exchange, only after it was made public in The Gleaner."
She added: "It was surprising that this information that should have been communicated to the JSE in keeping with the JSE Rule 410, Communication and Announcement and Appendix 8, 'Statement of Timely Disclosure' and the JSE's letter of October 24, 2003, in respect of 'Release of Company News' was made public only through the report in The Gleaner."
Mrs. Street noted that the rules of the Jamaica Stock Exchange were developed in keeping with the organisation's mandate "to develop, apply and enforce rules designed to ensure public confidence in the stock market."
NOTE
The Gleaner Company Ltd. apologises for not formally advising the Jamaica Stock Exchange that it had acquired the Voice newspaper in the UK. The company did not intentionally violate the rules relating to Communication and Announcement. The company first reported that it was in talks to acquire the British newspaper on September 7, 2003.
