Market Turnover Slightly Moves Up To 2.2 Billion Shillings on Thursday

Turnover went up slightly to 2.2 billion shillings during the session on Thursday from 1.7 billion shillings at the close of business on Wednesday.

According to a daily report from Genghis Capital, the turnover included trades on the short end and the 10-yr tenor that had been closed before the auction meeting on Wednesday.

Liquidity has been improving with the interbank rate dropping to 4.96 percent from 5.27 percent with volumes going up from 16.35 billion shillings to 17.65 billion shillings. In this regard, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) stayed out of the market, citing a square market.

Despite the money market environment the secondary market will remain subdued as supply on the medium and short end is limited.

The Kenyan shilling gained marginally yesterday due to an increase in remittances closing at an average of 100.71. The shilling has remained resilient against the US Dollar, the Euro and the Sterling Pound proving analysts who had predicted its downfall at the beginning of 2018.

As the week comes to an end, economic analysts expect to see activity inclined towards the Banking counters and Safaricom, with downward pressure on the stocks to continue in Friday’s session.

Book closure for Barclays and Stanbic is slated for Friday and Monday, respectively, with a bit of activity expected on the two counters.

Major Activity During The Week

The week has been a dramatic one with pain and tears among most Kenyans. The week kicked off with the National Treasury implementing the 16 percent Value Added Tax on petroleum products.

Currently, a liter of super petrol is retailing at 127 shillings in Nairobi while that of diesel is at 115 shillings with the prices being higher in other parts of the country.

A High Court sitting in Bungoma suspended the implementation of the same VAT on Thursday but the government is yet to issue a statement.