BSE records P236.2 million turnover

Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) has recorded a turnover of P236.2 million from a volume 100.7 million shares traded as at March 31, 2018, the Market Status Report for period January 1 to March 31, 2018 reports.

The Stock Exchange had registered a turnover of P532.8 million and a total volume of 173.9 million shares traded during the same period in 2017. The report indicates that the year-to-date period turnover in 2018 was relatively less stable compared to the same period in 2016 and 2017.

According to the report, a relatively fewer companies accounted for a relatively larger amount of turnover over this period compared to the same period in 2017. This has been attributed to the fact that, the top three traded companies in terms of value, on a year-to-date basis, were Letshego Holdings Limited (P118.0 million), CA Sales Holdings Limited (P31.0 million) and First National Bank Botswana (P30.8 million) and these accounted for 76.2 percent of total turnover during the period to end of March 2018. During the same period in 2017, the top three traded companies accounted to 49.1 percent of turnover. During the first quarter of 2018, the ETFs market was less active compared to first quarter of 2017.

The volume of ETF units traded was 451 868 in 2018 while the turnover registered was P41.4 million. Over the same period in 2017, the number of units traded amounted to 3.1 million yielding a turnover of P122.9 million. Activity in the bond market had decreased in 2018 (period to 31 March 2018) compared to the same period in 2017.

The value of bonds traded over the period was P27.4 million in comparison to P91.2 million traded over the same period in 2017. Bank of Botswana (BoB), on behalf of government, held its first bond auction of 2018 on March 2, offering additional tranches of the BW007 (P77 million allotted), BW008 (P100 million allotted), BW011 (P100 million allotted), BW013 (not allotted) bonds and a Treasury Bill (P220 million allotted).

The BSE has registered one bond listing so far, being the BW013 bond, which was issued at the December 1, 2017 auction and listed on the BSE on January 24, 2018. In total, there are 44 listed bonds compared to 42 bonds as at March 31, 2017. Market capitalisation of listed bonds increased to P14.8 billion compared to P11.9 billion as at the same period in 2017.