The global pandemic known as coronavirus is spreading rapidly and wreaking havoc on anything it its path. African currencies are taking a hit , economies are being shaken and businesses can only remain hopeful . However, COVID-19 is also eating its way into stock exchange(s) in Africa. Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE)
First off, the JSE is one of the few organizations that remain open during the 21-day coronavirus lockdown in South Africa. This exemption might be for the best, given that the exchange had already been walking on thin ice.
As of now, 90 percent of JSE staff are working from home, but the essential individuals will be going to the office. Asides from that, investors are tending to prefer and opt for companies that have high cash balances at this stage.
As of early this month, stocks on the exchange were plunging, a result of the hike in oil prices and the fears arising from the rapid spread of COVID-19. There were widespread losses on the JSE, with the all-share index losing more than 5 percent.
Nevertheless, JSE, which is the biggest in Africa by market cap, appears unwilling to make drastic decisions. It decided against shortening trading hours after consulting with market players. So trading continues as usual. Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE)
With a market cap of USD 44 Bn, the NSE is one of the most developed in Africa. It has not been exempted from the COVID-19 scare, as almost 3 in every 4 transactions were closed at premium as of Wednesday. That was when the market went on remote trading, after it shut down its trading floors in response to the pandemic.
Things seemed hopeful when the exchange had 20 advancers to 7 decliners. But the underlying resilience was debunked by losses recorded by two large-cap stocks. Total Nigeria and MTN Communications Nigeria lost enough to drag the NSE under.
The NSE will be closed for the next 30 days to inhibit the spread of COVID-19. But, there is still much work to be done as its opening aggregate market value of NGN 11.324 Tn (above USD 30 Bn) dropped to about NGN 11.330 Tn.
The All Share Index (ASI)—the value-based index that tracks all share prices at the exchange—declined from its opening index of 21,741.16 points to close at 21,729.48 points. Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE)
The last time the Nairobi Stock Exchange was at such a low level was 2003. […]