Africa Weekly Equity Market Commentary – March 19, 2020

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Overall sentiment on African equity markets was bearish. Among the markets we cover, 10 of them retreated this week – some of them, severely – while 6 advanced and one remained flat. Kenya led the pack as equities in Nairobi jumped 3% and are up 9.75% so far this year. Conversely, Namibian equities lost 6.69% over the 5-day period but remain up 8.25% YTD.

West Africa
BRVM – Bulls set the tempo on the Western Africa regional exchange pushing the benchmark index up during all five sessions of the week. Overall, the Composite Index gained 2.39% to break the 140 points mark in a thinly traded week that saw only XOF 139m (USD 0.25m) worth of shares change hands every day on average. This is about half of the already low daily average turnover seen the week before. The market is now down 2.57% year-to-date and the total market capitalization stands at XOF 4,264bn (USD 7.7bn). SAPH – Société Africaine de Plantations d’Hévéas is the top performer this week. The stock of the rubber producer jumped 16.55% over the 5-day period and is up 80% since the start of the year. The market heavyweight, Sonatel, closed the week at XOF 13,000, up 6.56% over the week. Shares in the telecom operator are down 3.70% year-to-date.

NGSE – Bears maintained their hold on equities in Lagos. The benchmark index of the Nigerian stock exchange declined for the seventh-straight week closing on Friday at 38,648.48, down 0.69% WoW. YTD returns moved further into negative territory in local currency (-4.69%). Rising yields in the fixed income space continued to weigh on investor sentiment. Activity remained strong this week as NGN 3.9bn (USD 10.13m) worth of shares was traded on average over the last five days. The total market capitalization stands at NGN 20.1tn (USD 52.8bn). The top performer this week is Eterna. Shares in the petrochemical company jumped 20.78% and are now up 9.41% YTD. Dangote Cement, on the other hand, remained flat at NGN 220. The shares in the cement producers are down 10.17% YTD.

North Africa
BVC – Morrocan equities advanced this week. The MASI gained 0.57% in a week that saw MAD 126.9m (USD 14.1m) worth of shares change hands every day on average, a 70% increase from the week before. Total market capitalization stands at MAD 594bn (USD 66.1bn), up 1.58% YTD. Managem is the top performer this week. The shares in the mining company soared 8.88% as it announced the completion of its partnership with China’s Wanbao to acquire 65% and develop the Gabgaba gold mine in Sudan. The counter is now up 18.45% YTD. The heavyweight Maroc Telecom remained flat at MAD 139.5. The stock is down 3.79% YTD.

EGX – The Egyptian market severely dropped this week. The EGX 30 lost 3.05% and closed at 10,918.40 points on Thursday. Compared to the previous week, average daily turnover further dropped 20% to EGP 0.97bn (USD 62.0m) and the total market capitalization amounts to EGP 666.8bn (USD 42.5bn). The benchmark index is up 0.67% so far this year. Raya Holdings for Tech & Communications, the IT services company, is a notable performer this week. The counter gained 6.26% over the week and is up 275% YTD. The Egyptian heavyweight, CIB, closed EGP 61 on Thursday, up 2.40% YTD. Note that Fawry, the listed fintech company, closed lower on Thursday at EGP 34.97, down 2.83% from last week. The counter is still up 4.33% YTD.

East Africa
NSE – Bullish sentiment prevailed in Nairobi this week. The Nairobi Securities Exchange’s benchmark index gained 3.00% WoW. However, the average daily turnover dropped 50% to KES 339m (USD 3.1m) and the total market capitalization amounts to KES 2,565bn (USD 23.4bn). The market is up 9.75% YTD. Jubilee Holdings topped the performance board this week. The shares in the insurance group jumped 8.88% WoW and are now up 0.35% YTD. Safaricom rallied this week as shares in the telecom operator closed at KES 38.60 on Friday, up 4.04% WoW. The counter is now up 12.70% so far this year.

Southern Africa
JSE – South African equities significantly dropped as the JSE ASI lost 3.37% WoW to close at 65,911.25. The ASI fell the most in three weeks on Friday as inflation fears weighed on global sentiment, with platinum miners and resources performing the worst. South African equities are now up 10.94% so far this year. The JSE heavyweight Prosus closed at ZAR 1,635 on Friday (-9.55% WoW). It is now up 1.80% YTD.

ZSE – Bears were still in charge in Harare. The ASI dropped another 6.57%. Daily average turnover significantly dropped to around ZWL 66m (USD 0.79m) and total market capitalization amounts to ZWL 502bn (USD 5.98bn). Zimbabwean equities are up 58.10% so far this year.

Source: African-markets.com