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Kenya's bourse 20 Share Index sustains upward trend

Xinhua, April 21, 2016 Adjust font size:

Kenya's Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) 20 Share Index sustained its upward trend Wednesday, gaining 5 points to close the day at 3,939.50.

The index has been on the rise since last week, recording marginal growths as prices of some key stocks like Safaricom went up. Analysts expect it to continue strengthening towards the 3,950 mark where it had peaked a fortnight ago.

On Wednesday, the NSE reviewed the 20 Share Index, dropping Kenya Airways and Standard Chartered Bank from the collection of 20 blue-chip companies trading at the bourse due to increased instability in earnings and mounting liabilities.

The two firms were replaced by Diamond Trust Bank and CIC Insurance. According to NSE, to be in the index, a company should ideally be a blue-chip with superior profitability and dividend record.

Similarly, the All Share Index (NASI) ended 0.44 points higher to stand at 146.87 while the NSE 25 Share Index gained 13.25 points to settle at 4,184.94.

Some 24 million shares valued at 7.8 million U.S. dollars were traded, down from 39 million valued at 8.5 million dollars the previous trading session.

The banking sector had 14.2 million shares traded, accounting for 57 percent of the day's traded volume.

Under the category, Equity Group Holdings was the day's biggest mover with 9.9 million shares changing hands at between 0.38 and 0.40 dollars.

Kenya Commercial Bank Group, which announced it had acquired troubled lender Chase Bank, went up 0.03 dollars to 0.43 dollars and actively moved 3 million shares, up from 604,000 shares.

Safaricom, in the telecommunication sector, moved 5 million shares at an average of 0.18 dollars despite a surge of 3 percent in price, a drop from 21 million shares the previous day.

The bond market had bonds worth 4.6 million dollars transacted, down from 7.6 million dollars the previous day. Enditem