Companies: PMK   

After shaving last year's loss, share market operator PLUS Markets Group is confident of winning greater market share.

AIM-quoted PLUS Markets, which operates the OFEX market and provides competitive trading platforms for some London Stock Exchange sectors, reduced its loss last year from £1.32 million to £1.15 million after one-off expenditure of £580,000 on service development. Turnover rose 13 per cent to £1.45 million.

Chairman Stephen Hazell-Smith says a key event last year was the launch of the company's 'PLUS' service, a quote-driven system, 'providing an alternative execution venue for securities with a listing or quotation elsewhere in London'. As a result, PLUS now trades more than 750 securities with a combined value of £65 billion, against 140 securities worth £1.4 billion a year ago, claims 'significant market share' in segments such as the FTSE Fledgling Index and attracted 122 brokers and five market makers on board.

Hazell-Smith says OFEX has turned around its performance, with the first increase on new entrants for five years. New innovations and expansion moves are promised. At 27p, the shares might reward a specialist interest.