Ghana Equity Watch | 2 July 2015: Ghana equity markets indices and market capitalization bearish today, US$ 52 million down

Accra, Ghana (Capital Markets in Africa):- Ghana stock market was closed yesterday for the independent day and closed on negative note today’s trading session. The benchmark composite index plunged by 9.44 points or about 0.40 percent to end the day at 2,342.79, bringing the year- to- date return to 3.62 percent. Equally, the financial Index dropped by 13.06 points or 0.55 percent to 2,381.62 with a year-to-date return of 6.15 percent. Likewise, the market capitalization nearly dropped by GHS 51.5 million (or 0.08 percent relative to yesterday market cap of GHS 64,616.48) to settle at GHS 64,565.03 million.

From the market activity perspective, trading activity on the stock market showed an improved volume and turnover. The total volume and total turnover were recorded at 582,891 (a rise of about 185.38 percent from yesterday’s total volume of 204,248 shares) and GHS 635,583 (an increase of almost 352 percent compared with previous trading session turnover of GHS 140.702). CAL Bank recorded a volume of 447,859 (about 77 percent of the total volume) and turnover of GHS 492,644 (about 78 percent of the total valued). Other most actively traded stocks were UT Bank Limited Ghana (48,100 shares traded at GHS 8,177), ECOBANK Transnational Incorporation (recorded volume of 26,000 at GHS 9,620), Enterprise Group (volume of 25,035 at GHS 48,818) and The Trust Bank Gambia (3,682 traded volume at GHS 32,427). The top five most actively traded stocks by volume accounted for 95 percent of the total volume and about 93 percent of the total market turnover.

Looking at the price movers and shakers, out of the 11 traded securities today there was no gainers and two laggards, so the market breath today end negative. ECOBANK Ghana lost 0.11 percent or GHS 0.01 with a closing price of GHS 8.80 and Standard Chartered Bank Ghana tumbled by 2.11 percent or GHS 0.42 to conclude at GHS 19.52.

On the foreign exchange market front, the Ghanaian Cedi depreciated against all the other major trading currencies today. However, the local currency edged higher against the Swiss Franc.