The Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE) recorded growth in February, with the market registering a 26.96 percent month-on-month return on index coupled with significant increases in trading activity.
According to the latest MSE Monthly Market Report, the Malawi All Share Index (Masi) surged to 283,722.24 points, up from 223,474.92 points in January, delivering a year-to-date return of 64.92 percent.
The market’s total traded value jumped by 37 percent to K13.4 billion ($7.73 million) compared to January’s K9.78 billion, despite only a marginal 1.78 percent increase in the volume of shares traded.
FMB Capital Holdings plc led the market rally with a 120.43 percent gain, followed by Nico Holdings plc, which nearly doubled its share price with a 98.24 percent increase.
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Other notable performers in the month include Airtel Malawi at 52.25 percent, TNM plc at 47.35 percent and National Investment Trust plc at 43.84 percent.
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The market’s liquidity indicators also showed improvement, with turnover velocity increasing to 0.087 percent from January’s 0.081 percent.
Market capitalisation, as a percentage of gross domestic product, rose significantly to 77.89 percent in February from 61.14 percent in January.
All but one of the 16 listed companies registered price gains, with Icon Properties plc being the sole decliner with a marginal 0.33 percent drop in the month.
In an interview, MSE Chief Operating Officer Kelline Kondowe said the market had been driven by significant demand from the investing public.
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“The challenge remains that we have only a limited number of securities on the exchange and, with increased demand, it is resulting in the rise in stock prices. This is a good indicator of the appetite that is out there for more listings on the exchange,” Kondowe said.
