Overall sentiment on African equity markets was bullish with most markets advancing this week. Once again, Zimbabwe led the pack. Its benchmark index jumped another 11.43%, while, conversely, Nigeria’s declined 1.66% over the week.
West Africa
BRVM – The Western Africa regional exchange confirmed its positive momentum. The Composite Index gained 1.74% in a week that saw XOF 922m (USD 1.68m) worth of shares change hands every day on average, up 2.5x from the last week of January. The market is now down 6.34% year-to-date and the total market capitalization stands at XOF 4,091bn (USD 7.5bn). The top performer this week is the Bank of Africa – Mali . The stock soared 23.75% over the 5-day period and is now up 32% since the beginning of the year. The market heavyweight, Sonatel , closed the week at XOF 11,290, up 2.63% over the week. Shares in the telecom operator are down 16.37% year-to-date.
NGSE – Bears set the tone on the Nigerian market this week. The ASI declined each day of the week to close at 41,709.09, down 1.66%. Analysts at Greenwich Merchant Bank attributed the bearish performance to “the profit booking activities across counters that gained in the previous week’s rally and the gradual uptick in the stop rates at Primary Market Auctions (PMAs)”. A daily average of NGN 5.3bn (USD 14.0m) worth of shares was traded over the last five days. The total market capitalization stands at NGN 21.8tn (USD 57bn), up 3.57% year-to-date. The top performer on the main board this week is Jaiz Bank Plc . Shares in the non-interest Nigerian bank operating under Islamic banking principles jumped 10.77%. They are up 9.09% so far this year. Dangote Cement , on the other hand, lost some ground and closed the week at NGN 230 (-2.54%). The shares in the cement producers are down 6.08% YTD.
North Africa
BVC – Morrocan equities had a good week. The MASI gained 0.72% in a thinly traded week as MAD 83.4m (USD 9.3m) worth of shares changed hands every day on average. Total market capitalization stands at MAD 605bn (USD 67bn). Wafa Assurance is the top performer this week. The shares in the insurer rose 7.49%. The heavyweight Maroc Telecom closed at MAD 146.8 on Friday, up 1.24% so far this year.
EGX – The Egyptian market edged up this week. The EGX 30 added 0.17% and […]
