Ghana set to issue maiden 10-year domestic bond to ease rates: Ghana has demand it’s first 10-year domestic bond in an effort to restructure debt to ease interest rates and raise longer term funds to support government pending. The 2026 issuance, is open to non-resident buyers and will seek roughly 200 million Cedis. The pricing guiders are Barclays Bank Ghana, Stanbic Ghana and Strategic African Securities. In line with the IMF program, Ghana signed up to in 2015 to restore fiscal balance to the economy. With prudent economic management and reducing short-term debts to a sizeable amount, the financing gap in the economy could be narrowed. Positive effects felt in the long run by the private firms seeking debt financing.
Securities Africa Group sets up Kenyan subsidiary: Stockbroking and financial services firm, Securities Africa Group has launched a subsidiary, after it was granted a license by Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA). As well as being admitted as a trading participant at the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Kenya is the largest and most liquid regional market; thus it is an important entry point into the East African market when considering the securities in Africa. In order to position itself as the top brokerage firm, SAG would need a focused business plan that not only intends to have impact on the Kenyan capital markets, but across the African capital markets as a whole by leveraging their network of corporations, institutions, sovereign and retail investors.
Nigeria FG plans N6.8tn budget for 2017: In the 2017-2019 Medium-term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper, the 2017 budget is estimated to be N6.8tn, 13.3% increase of the 2016 budget. Against the backdrop of the generally adverse global economic environment and the fiscal challenges in the domestic economy; thus the 2017 budget will hopefully restore the economy to a sustainable, inclusive growth path, with emphasis on job creation and private-sector investments. A projection of 3.02% in GDP growth and an expected moderation of inflation to 12.92% was also stated in the paper. Assumptions on crude oil, projected 2017 price per barrel to be $42.5, The Naira is expected to appreciate against the dollar, being pegged at N290 per dollar. With adequate financial management focusing on employment growth and labour productivity, the FG are confident in repealing the recession.
| Country | 2015 P GDP Growth (%) | 2016 GPD (USD ‘b) | 2016 P GDP Growth (%) | 2017 P GDP Growth (%) | Credit Rating |
| Ghana | 3.881% | 42.761 | 3.337% | 7.38% | B-/S&P, B/Fitch |
| Nigeria | 2.653% | 415.080 | -1.746% | 0.65% | B+/S&P, BB-/Fitch |
| Kenya | 5.649% | 69.170 | 5.987% | 6.14% | B+/S&P, B+/Fitch |
| Mauritius | 3.500% | 11.740 | 3.523% | 3.90% | Baa1/Moody’s |
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database (Oct. 2016), GDP (P- Projected)
Economic Rates
| Country | 91 Day T-Bill | 182 Day T-Bill | Inflation (%) | Policy Rate (%) |
| Ghana | 22.50% | 22.55% | 15.80% | 26.00% |
| Nigeria | 14.51% | 18.68% | 17.70% | 14.00% |
| Kenya | 8.11% | 10.30% | 6.34% | 10.50% |
| Mauritius | 2.53% | 2.68% | 1.50% | 4.00% |
Source: Various Central Banks.
Exchange Rates (Local Currencies against the USD)
| Country | Year Open 31-Dec-2015 | Week Close | YTD Change | YTD (%) |
| Ghana | 3.8011 | 4.003 | -0.2019 | -5.31% |
| Nigeria | 196.899 | 316.063 | -119.164 | -60.52% |
| Kenya | 100.529 | 99.842 | 0.687 | 0.68% |
| Mauritius | 34.8304 | 34.2458 | 0.5846 | 1.68% |
Source: Oanda
Stock Market Performance
| Country | Year End 2015 | Week Close | Week Change | YTD Return (%) |
| Ghana | 1,994.91 | 1,679.41 | -315.50 | -15.82% |
| Nigeria | 28,642.25 | 26,170.88 | -2,471.37 | -8.63% |
| Kenya | 145.7 | 140.01 | -5.69 | -3.91% |
| Mauritius | 1,811.07 | 1,787.88 | -23.19 | -1.28% |
Source: Various Stock Exchanges
Download Full Report: https://nimedcapital.com/nimed-research-weekly-25-jan-2019/
