NSE shakes off election fever, pushes market capitalisation to Sh2.3tr
Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has shaken-off jitters arising from the disputed Presidential Election results after local investors expanded their participation following a massive foreign investor exit.
Activities were up yesterday compared to Tuesday’s trading session, two days after the pronouncement by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
During the session, investor wealth or market capitalisation rose to Sh2.294 trillion from Sh2.292 trillion on Monday.
The steady performance at the NSE was against the expectations of concerns by investors, who would have interpreted disputes to the Presidential Election results as a signal to a protracted electioneering period.
After international investors left the Nairobi exchange in mid-May, local investors expanded their participation, which contributed to the Nairobi bourse’s resiliency.
“Investors had already factored in election concerns, which have been overwhelmed by global considerations,” said Solomon Kariuki, head of research at AIB-AXYS Africa.
The results of the presidential election on August 9 were criticized by Mr. Odinga as a “travesty,” and he foresaw a protracted legal crisis for Kenya’s democracy.
Fears of uncertainty have been sparked by the dramatic series of events, echoing those that followed disputed polls in 2007 and again in 2017.
Take a tumble
Jitters in the run-up to the August 9 General Election had already seen the NSE take a tumble, with foreign investors for instance selling off their local equities holdings. Wednesday’s equity turnover was up to Sh272 million from Sh195 million on Tuesday and Sh222 million on Monday.
This as the number of shares traded rose to 10 million up from 7.5 million on Tuesday and 9.1 million on Monday. The NSE 20 Share index for instance declined to 1729 on Wednesday compared to 1785 on Tuesday while the NSE all share index declined from 147 to 146.
–John Otini
