Trading activity at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) went up significantly on Tuesday 9th December, with total turnover surging by 168% to reach KES 1.602 billion. The session’s participation was predominantly domestic, with local investors accounting for 79.2 percent of the activity, while foreign investor participation constituted the remaining 20.8 percent.
In terms of individual stock performance, Uchumi Supermarkets emerged as the day’s leading gainer, registering a notable appreciation of 5.1% in its share price to KES 1.85. It was closely followed by TPS Eastern Africa whose share price appreciated by 4.2% to close at KES 14.80. Conversely, the market witnessed declines led by the construction firm East African Portland Cement. Its share price experienced a substantial depreciation of 7.9% to KES 72.75. Manufacturing company Africa Mega Agricorp saw its share price decline 6.3% to close at KES 67.50.
NSE Indices Close in the Red
The broader market indices reflected a general downtrend during the session. This was primarily evidenced by a 1.3% decline in the Nairobi All Share Index (NASI), to close the day at 176.80 points. The downward trajectory was consistent across all key indices. Specifically, the NSE 10 Index recorded a drop of 1.4%, while both the NSE 20 and NSE 25 Indices declined by 0.8% each. The Banking Sector Index also retreated, posting a more modest dip of 0.6%.
This overall market pressure was largely attributable to losses in several heavyweight stocks, including Co-operative Bank (- 5.2%), Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) (-3.3%), Safaricom (-2.4%), and Equity Group (-0.8%). However, these losses were partially mitigated by gains in other counters, such as Diamond Trust Bank (+3.8%), Jubilee Holdings (+2.7%), NCBA Group (+ 2.0%), and British American Tobacco (+0.9%).
KCB Leads in Turnover at the NSE
Regarding trading volume and turnover, the session concluded with KCB Group standing as the most actively traded counter. It recorded an aggregate turnover of KES 548.76 million (34.2% of total turnover for the trading day), leading the market in this regard. Meanwhile, activity in the derivatives market presented a mixed picture with both the volume and the total value of traded contracts declining relative to the previous day. The number of open interest contracts dwas up to 5,644 contracts from the 5,444 contracts recorded in the previous trading session.
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