Recommendation - Alfa-bank assigned rating to shares of Kazakhstan banks

/REUTERS, April 18, 06/ - Russian Alfa-bank conferred different recommendations to shares of seven Kazakhstan banks: Kazkommerts, TuranAlem, Halyk, ATF, CenterCredit and Bank Caspian. Alfa-bank Альфа points out at very low level of share liquidity of the most banks. "However, all banks, to which we talked - besides Kazkommerts and Aliance - confirmed that their shareholders are ready to purchase the blocking or control share holding in coming future (it is clear, at appropriate for them price)," - the report says. Recommendations on ADR of Kazkommerts - to buy, on common shares - to sell. Alfa stresses on big difference in prices: ADR quotations estimate the common shares at $7.18, whereas in Kazakhstan they are traded at $12.93. Alfa is waiting for soon announcement of Kazkommertsbank about IPO, which will the prices upward. Recommendation on common shares of TuranAlem - to sell, on convertible preferred - to purchase. Alfa points out at big difference in their prices with the possibility of 1 to 1conversion until the end of this year. The growth catalyst may become the control share holding to big international bank, for example, Raiffeisen bank. Alfa also recommends to hold common shares of Halyk bank and to purchase preferred and convertible securities, which are considered underestimated at present. The same recommendation was given on shares of ATF-bank: to hold common, to purchase cheap preferred. Recommendation on common and preferred shares of Aliance-bank - to purchase. Alfa gives the same recommendation on common and preferred shares CenterCredit and Bank Caspian. [2006-04-18]