Car & General PLC continued its remarkable run on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), with its share price jumping 42.84% in the week ended August 21 to KSh374.25. The latest surge pushed the company’s two-week gain to about 111%, making it one of the market’s strongest-performing counters as investors continued to pile into selected stocks.
The wider NSE also had a strong week, with total market value climbing by about KSh110.07 billion to a record KSh4.106 trillion. The Nairobi All Share Index (NASI) rose 2.75% to 244.69, marking its strongest weekly performance in two months. Other major indices also closed higher, led by the NSE 10, which gained 3.22%, while the NSE 25, Banking Index and NSE 20 advanced 3.01%, 2.86% and 2.37%, respectively.
Banking stocks were among the biggest drivers of the rally. KCB gained 7.16% to KSh93.50, Equity Group rose 4.46% to KSh93.50 and Absa advanced 3.67% to KSh35.25. I&M Holdings jumped 13.26%, while Diamond Trust Bank gained 12.50%. Co-operative Bank was one of the exceptions, falling 5.09%. Outside the banking sector, Carbacid rose 24.67%, Shri Krishana Overseas gained 24.64%, while Safaricom, EABL and BAT Kenya also posted gains.
Trading activity picked up sharply as investors returned to the market. Equity turnover surged 217.92% to KSh12.45 billion, while traded volumes increased 221.66% to 321.95 million shares. Absa accounted for KSh6.61 billion, or 53.11% of total equity turnover, while banking stocks collectively generated 77.42% of the week’s activity. Foreign investors also returned as net buyers, recording a KSh2.62 billion net inflow after registering net selling the previous week.
The momentum was not limited to equities, with bond turnover rising 146.31% to KSh122.82 billion. Treasury bills attracted KSh71.7 billion in bids against KSh28 billion on offer, representing a 255.9% subscription rate, while yields edged lower across all three tenors. Meanwhile, banking-system liquidity remained comfortable, the shilling held broadly steady at KSh129.49 per dollar and foreign-exchange reserves stood at US$15.16 billion, equivalent to 6.3 months of import cover. With strong corporate earnings, renewed foreign investor interest and rising activity across stocks and bonds, the NSE appears to be entering a period of heightened investor confidence.
source: kenyanwallstreet
