Kenya to Withstand Unforeseen Shocks from Brexit Vote

Trading activity dropped today when compared to yesterday.  The NSE 20 Share index slid down to settle at 3750.98 points while the NASI decreased marginally to close the day at 145.16 points.

The NSE 25 Share index declined by 17.97 points to end the day at 4099.81 points. Market Capitalization fell to KES 2059 billion from KES 2076 billion before whilst equity turnover diminished to KES 0.37 billion from KES 1.28 billion previously as a result of reduced volume of shares traded.

Kenya’s central bank has enough foreign exchange reserves and funds available from an IMF standby facility to weather any fallout from a British referendum on whether to leave the European Union, the governor said on Tuesday.

Kenya’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $7.6 billion on June 16, equivalent to five months import cover, according to the central bank figures on its website. In March, the International Monetary Fund approved two-year standby facilities for Kenya worth about $1.5 billion, which can be drawn on if the country faces unforeseen shocks. Britons vote in the referendum on EU membership on Thursday.

Counters expected to show increased levels of activity going forward due to the drawing closer of their date of books closures which has been set for 30th June,2016, include Kapchorua, Williamson Tea Ltd, CFC Holdings and Umeme.

The Kenyan shilling exhibited stability against the USD as it traded at a mean of KES 101.20 compared to an average of KES 101.23 yesterday but it remained volatile against the GBP as market players were cautious in regard to the outcome of Britain’s referendum on whether to exit the European Union today.