Stock Market
June 7, 2017
2 minutes read

Bond Turnover at NSE Hits 11-Month High in May As Shilling Continues to Weaken

The bond turnover at the bourse, Nairobi Security Exchange hit an 11-month high in the month of May in what…

The bond turnover at the bourse, Nairobi Security Exchange hit an 11-month high in the month of May in what has been termed by economic experts as the move by investors to turn to the secondary market in search of fixed incomes with higher yields.

In recent weeks, according to reports from the NSE, the money market has witnessed liquidity as a result of massive subscriptions by investors on primary treasuries. The result also has been as an effect of the government’s failure to take up expensive money at the bourse leaving numerous offers on display with the majority of the cash flowing into the secondary market.

According to statistics from the NSE, the total turnover on bonds in a five-month period stands at 191 billion shillings lower than the 207 billion shillings recorded for the first five months of the year 2016.

The Kenyan shilling has continued with its weakening trend on the second month against the US Dollar, the Sterling Pound, and the Euro.

Against the US Dollar, the Kenyan Shilling weakened by 0.8 percent year-to-date while against the Sterling Pound, the Shilling weakened by 6.1 percent. The shillings weakened further against the Euro by 8.6 percent year-to-date.

On the Kenyan Stock Market on Tuesday, the market turnover at the bourse went up by 4.6 percent to USD 4.78 million and equivalent 493.4 million shillings. The NSE 20 and NASI Indices dropped by 0.7 percent and 0.9 percent to close at 3,457.29 and 148.25 respectively.

Foreign investors assumed a net selling position by accounting for 81.3 percent of total market sales and 33.3 percent of total market purchases.