Economy
Survey Shows Key Investment Decisions of African Fund Managers
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A survey of 50 African asset managers for the African Exchanges Linkage Project (AELP) project has revealed the key factors fund managers consider when they choose new markets.
According to the report, some of the critical decisions made before investing in other African markets include governance, good regulation and availability of market data and prices.
From the questionnaires sent out to the selected fund managers, 91 per cent said the consider market regulation, followed by investor regulation and availability of market data and prices (90 per cent each).
Other top criteria that help fund managers choose where to invest are levels of dealing price, efficiency of execution and commission (86 per cent), the quality of companies and investment opportunities (also 86 per cent), corporate, social and governance criteria (84 per cent) and availability of research (80 per cent).
It was observed that three quarters of investors said they were reluctant to invest in small and illiquid markets or where valuations are excessive.
Only half decide to invest in a company based on its dividend policy, while valuation and governance are the top factors.
Asset managers in Nigeria and the francophone West African countries are the most optimistic about prospects for Africa’s economies.
In the AELP poll, some 97 per cent of the surveyed Nigerian asset managers are optimistic about the continent, with average assets of $364 million under management, followed by 85 per cent of surveyed francophone asset managers, who averaged $416 million of assets managed.
Average across all the survey respondents, including a couple of South African managers, was $4.1 billion in assets under management.
Optimism is also strong among asset managers surveyed in Mauritius (80 per cent optimistic), Morocco (73 per cent), Nairobi and Egypt (each with 65 per cent of responses optimistic).
Nearly half (46 per cent) of respondents manage assets with investment horizons over five years, another 23 per cent for three to five years.
“The results of this survey confirm the high level of professionalism of African fund managers using world-class standards and criteria in their decision-making. This is really reassuring for the success of the AELP initiative,” the president of ASEA, Dr Edoh Kossi Amenounvé, stated.
The poll evaluates the appeal of different investment markets in the AELP, which brings together seven leading African securities exchanges to boost trading, investment and information links.
AELP is procuring a technology platform to link stockbrokers, so that a broker on one exchange can send investors’ orders to an executing broker on another exchange for execution.
The AELP is a joint initiative by the African Securities Exchanges Association (ASEA) and the African Development Bank to unlock Pan-African investment flows, promote innovations that support diversification for investors, and address depth and liquidity in the markets. It is funded by the Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (KOAFEC) Trust Fund through the African Development Bank.
The AELP exchanges are Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières (BRVM, integrating eight West African countries), Casablanca Stock Exchange, The Egyptian Exchange, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Nairobi Securities Exchange, The Nigerian Stock Exchange and Stock Exchange of Mauritius.
Cross-border trading between the seven markets totalled $1.1 billion in 2019, and was at over $500 million in the first quarter of 2020, according to the participating markets.
The “African Listed Securities” assets across these exchanges offers equities investments in more than 1,050 companies, including Africa’s most promising, profitable companies and global leaders. Investors will also buy or sell bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and derivatives if they are listed on the participating Exchanges.
ASEA supports African economic integration and the African Continental Free Trade Area. The AELP will promote free movement of capital and investment.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Food Concepts Plc neutralized the gains recorded by three securities, returning the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange into the negative territory with a 0.27 per cent loss on Thursday, December 4.
Yesterday, the share price of the parent company of Chicken Republic and PieXpress declined by 34 Kobo to sell at N3.15 per unit compared with the previous day’s N3.49 per unit.
This shrank the market capitalisation of the OTC bourse by N5.72 billion to N2.136 billion from N2.142 trillion and weakened the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 9.57 points to 3,571.53 points from 3,581.10 points.
Business Post reports that Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc went down by 50 Kobo to N38.50 per share from N38.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained 29 Kobo to sell at N55.79 per unit versus N55.50 per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc added 5 Kobo to close at N4.60 per share compared with Wednesday’s closing price of N4.55 per share.
Trading data indicated that the volume of securities recorded at the session surged by 6,885.3 per cent to 4.3 million units from the 61,570 units posted a day earlier, the value of securities increased by 10,301.7 per cent to N947.2 million from N3.3 million, and the number of deals went up by 146.7 per cent to 37 deals from the 15 deals achieved in the previous trading session.
At the close of business, Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc was the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with the sale of 5.8 billion units for N16.4 billion, trailed by Okitipupa Plc with 170.4 million units worth N8.0 billion, and Air Liquide Plc with 507.5 million units valued at N4.2 billion.
InfraCredit Plc also finished the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units transacted for N16.4 billion, followed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.2 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units traded for N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
The upward trend witnessed at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited in recent sessions continued on Thursday as it further improved by 0.10 per cent.
This was despite investor sentiment turning bearish after the local equity market ended with 23 price gainers and 28 price gainers, indicating a negative market breadth index.
UAC Nigeria gained 10.00 per cent to finish at N88.00, Morison Industries appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N3.54, Ecobank rose by 8.53 per cent to N36.90, and Coronation Insurance grew by 8.47 per cent to N2.56.
On the flip side, Ellah Lakes depreciated by 10.00 per cent to N13.14, Eunisell Nigeria also shed 10.00 per cent to finish at N72.90, Transcorp Hotels slipped by 9.95 per cent to N157.50, Omatek shrank by 9.23 per cent to N1.18, and Guinea Insurance dipped by 8.46 per cent to N1.19.
Yesterday, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 152.28 points to 145,476.15 points from 145,323.87 points and the market capitalisation chalked up N97 billion to finish at N92.726 trillion compared with the previous day’s N92.629 trillion.
Customs Street was bubbling with activities on Thursday, though the trading volume and value slightly went down, according to data.
A total of 1.9 billion stocks worth N19.2 billion exchanged hands in 23,369 deals during the session versus the N2.3 billion valued at N21.0 billion traded in 21,513 deals a day earlier.
This showed that the number of deals increased by 8.63 per cent, the volume of transactions depleted by 17.39 per cent, and the value of trades decreased by 8.57 per cent.
For another trading day, eTranzact led the activity chart with 1.6 billion units sold for N6.4 billion, Fidelity Bank traded 31.0 million units worth N589.3 million, GTCO exchanged 28.3 million units valued at N2.5 billion, Zenith Bank transacted 27.1 million units for N1.6 billion, and Ecobank traded 21.9 million units worth N744.3 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira marginally depreciated against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Thursday, December 4 amid renewed forex pressure associated with December.
At the official market yesterday, the Nigerian currency lost 0.01 per cent or 18 Kobo against the Dollar to close at N1,447.83/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,447.65/$1.
It was not a different scenario with the local currency in the same market segment against the Pound Sterling as it further shed N15.43 to sell for N1,930.97/£1 versus Wednesday’s closing price of N1,925.08/£1 and declined against the Euro by 20 Kobo to finish at N1,688.74/€1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,688.54/€1.
Similarly, the Nigerian Naira lost N5 against the greenback in the black market to quote at N1,465/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,460/$1 but closed flat against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter at N1,453/$1.
Fluctuations in trading range is expected to continue during the festive season as traders expect the Nigerian currency to be stable, supported by intervention s by to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)in the face of steady dollar demand.
Support is also expected in coming weeks as seasonal activities, particularly the stylised “Detty December” festivities, will see inflows that will give the Naira a boost after it depreciated mildly last month, according to a new report.
“As the festive Detty December season intensifies, inbound travel, tourism spending, and diaspora inflows are expected to provide moderate support for FX liquidity,” analysts at the research unit of FMDA said in its latest monthly report for November.
Traders cited by Reuters expect that the Naira will trade within a band of N1,443-N1,450 next week, buoyed by improved FX interventions by the apex bank.
Meanwhile, the crypto market was down as the US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, core PCE, likely rose in September—moving in the wrong direction. However, volatility indices show no signs of major turbulence.
If the actual figure matches estimates, it would mark 55 straight months of inflation above the US central bank’s 2 per cent target. The sticky inflation would strengthen the hawkish policymakers, who are in favour of slower rate cuts.
Ripple (XRP) depreciated by 4.5 per cent to $2.08, Solana (SOL) went down by 3.8 per cent to $138.11, Litecoin (LTC) shrank by 3.1 per cent to $83.23, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 2.5 per cent to $0.1463, Cardano (ADA) declined by 2.1 per cent to $0.4368, Bitcoin (BTC) fell by 0.9 per cent to $91,975.45, Binance Coin (BNB) crumbled by 0.9 per cent to $899.41, and Ethereum (ETH) dropped by 0.7 per cent to $3,156.44, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 apiece.
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