Bulls n Bears Daily Market Commentary : 17 August 2023

Fri Aug 18 06:33:04 CAT 2023

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Bulls n Bears Daily Market Commentary : 17 August 2023

ZSE commentary

Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE)

 <https://www.dulys.co.zw/> 

Positive gains were maintained on the local bourse during today's trading
session. Overall ZSE Market Cap closed 1.22% up at ZWL$9.56 trillion. Total
turnover went down by 10.53% to ZWL$685.22 million and total volumes traded
gained by 45.60% to close at ZWL$1.35 million.  Econet, Delta, and EcoCash
Holdings Ltd were today's three most traded counters, constituting about
90.26% of the total turnover.

The All-Share Index further increased by 1.22% to 120,445.11 points at the
back of 12 risers and 6 decliners. The Top-15 index added 1.43% to close at
77,029.18 points. The Top 10 Index also increased by 1.72% to close at
56,484.21 points.

Nampak Zimbabwe led today's gainer's list after adding 14.75% to close at
$140.00. Delta and Ecocash Holdings Ltd gained 3.68% and 1.84% to close at
$2,072.86 and $142.91, respectively. Dairibord and Ok Zimbabwe were also
among the risers and went up by 1.78% and 0.15% to close at $480.00 and
$140.49, respectively.

Leading on the laggards' list, Star Africa Corporation and Willdale lost
8.12% and 8.08% to close at $5.21 and $16.78, respectively. First
M.Properties, Ariston and Fidelity Life Assurance were also among the
defeated and lost 0.58%, 0.09% and 0.08% to close at $101.41, $23.40, and
$130.00, respectively.

Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX) 

The VFEX All Share Index gained 0.08% to close at 70.89 points. Innscor
Africa Ltd was the most traded counter on the VFEX Exchange, contributing
48.94% of the total turnover.

Global Currencies & Equity Markets

South Africa

South African rand gains as business confidence remains stable

(Reuters) - The South African rand strengthened on Thursday against the
dollar after data suggested the country's business confidence remained
relatively stable.

At 1628 GMT, the rand traded at 19.0875 against the dollar , about 0.52%
stronger than its previous close. It had risen more than 1.1% earlier in the
day.

The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) released its
business confidence index (ZABCI=ECI) for July and June, which came in at
107.3 and 108.8 respectively.

"The SACCI business confidence report showed a marginal drop off from the
June read but still remained stable indicative of no major shift in business
mindset," said DailyFX analyst Warren Venketas in a research note.

Before rising in June, the index fell every month over January to May, hurt
by record power cuts, rising interest rates and lower trade volumes among
other factors.

South Africa's economy is expected to barely grow this year because of a
power crisis that means businesses and households are without power for
hours every day.

Venketas warned that any increase in concern over China's economy and the
continuation of a hawkish tone from the Federal Reserve could once again
weaken the rand.

The rand slipped earlier this week after China's central bank surprisingly
cut key policy rates to boost a sputtering economic recovery in South
Africa's biggest trading partner.

Shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange fell, with the blue-chip Top-40
index (.JALSH) ending 0.67% lower.

South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was slightly weaker, with the
yield up 1 basis point to 10.430%.

Reporting by Tannur Anders and Bhargav Acharya Editing by Alexander Winning
and Hugh Lawson

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Nigeria

Naira rebounds, trades 850/dollar at parallel market

The naira rebounded against the United States dollar at the parallel market
on Wednesday, closing at 850/dollar.

This came about two days after the Central Bank of Nigeria announced its
planned intervention in the foreign exchange market.

The naira was sold for around 950/dollar at the parallel market on Monday.
It gained further and closed at 915/dollars on Tuesday.

A Bureau de Change operator, Alh Taofeek Ahmed, who spoke to The PUNCH on
Wednesday said, "We bought and sold the naira at 830/$ and 850/$ today. The
demand was lower compared to last week"

Another BDC operator at the Lagos airport, Alhaji Mustapha Umar, said the
greenback was sold and bought for 850/dollar and 835/dollar.

A BDC operator, Aminu Zakari, who operates around the Abuja CBD, said he
bought and sold the dollar for 860/dollar and 845/dollar.

According to him, there has been uncertainty in the parallel segment of the
market following the announcement by the CBN

He said operators were awaiting the proposed intervention by the central
bank.

At the Investor & Exporter forex window, trading commenced at N781.66/$ and
reached a high of N 799.90/$  before closing at N 759.86/$ on Wednesday; it
closed at N781.30/$ on Tuesday.

On Monday, after briefing President Bola Tinubu on what the bank was doing
to halt the naira slide at the State House in Abuja, the Acting Governor,
CBN, Folashodun Shonubi, said it was set to take new measures to stabilise
the naira against the dollar.

He assured Nigerians that the CBN was working to improve liquidity and
achieve stability in the market, including addressing issues in the parallel
market.

He said the fluctuations in the parallel market were not solely driven by
economic factors, but also speculative demand.

A top official of an investment bank said following the CBN's announcement
on Monday, speculators became cautious in the market.

"Many Nigerians abroad are investing in Eurobonds. But now, people that have
dollar income will prefer to save it in the dollar rather than change it to
naira. We have many Nigerian companies launching dollar-denominated bonds to
enable more people to invest in dollars," an analyst at a securities firm
who chose to remain anonymous said.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Limited obtained a $3bn emergency loan on
Wednesday to help stabilise the naira.

Analysts are divided if the amount is sufficient to stabilise the local
currency.

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

Global Markets

Dollar seeks direction after hitting two-month high, Norwegian crown gets
boost

(Reuters) - The dollar index was off a two-month high Thursday after Federal
Reserve meeting minutes left the door open for more rate hikes and data this
week indicated a resilient U.S. economy.

The Norwegian crown rose from six-week lows against the dollar and the euro
on Thursday after Norges Bank raised interest rates, as expected, and said
it was likely to hike again in September.

The U.S. dollar index was 0.145% lower on the day at 103.300, after hitting
a two-month high of 103.59.

The greenback has drawn support from a recent run of U.S. economic data
reinforcing the view that interest rates will remain high for some time.

Data on Wednesday showed that U.S. single-family home building surged in
July and permits for future construction rose, while a separate report said
production at U.S. factories unexpectedly rebounded last month.

Minutes of the Fed's July policy meeting showed officials were divided over
the need for more rate hikes last month, citing the risks to the economy if
rates were pushed too far.

"When you come back to the Fed minutes, there is a case for the Fed to hike
again in November, but I don't think the market wants to trade around
November just yet," said Adam Button, chief currency analyst at ForexLive.
"There's so much data between then and now."

Against the dollar , the Norwegian crown was last up 0.79% to 10.54, having
hit 10.66 earlier in the session.

"We do not see the Norges Bank as finished hiking yet and a September rate
hike seems all but certain," said Nick Rees, FX Market Analyst at Monex
Europe. Inflation, at 6.4% year-on-year in July, remains too hot for
comfort, he added.

DATA DEPENDENT

The Australian dollar steadied after sinking to a nine-month low, taking its
New Zealand counterpart along with it, on data showing that Australia's
employment unexpectedly fell in July while the jobless rate ticked higher.

The Australian dollar was last 0.05% lower at $0.642, having tumbled more
than 0.9% to a trough of $0.6365 following the employment data release. The
kiwi fell 0.06% to $0.593 after touching its lowest level since November.

The two antipodean currencies, often used as liquid proxies for the yuan,
have also taken a beating over the past few sessions as a result of the
darkening outlook over China's economy.

Elsewhere, the yen edged 0.15% higher to 146.10 after weakening to 146.56
per dollar, its lowest level since November, having come under renewed
pressure as a result of interest rate differentials between the U.S. and
Japan's ultra-low rate environment.

The Japanese currency is being closely watched since it touched the key 145
level for the first time in about nine months last Friday, crossing into a
zone that sparked an intervention by Japanese authorities in September and
October last year.

The euro was up 0.11% to $1.08895, after falling to a six-week low at
$1.0862. Sterling was last trading at $1.2754, up 0.17% on the day, after
surging on Wednesday on British inflation data.

Despite a sharp drop in Britain's headline inflation rate, key measures of
price growth monitored by the Bank of England (BoE) failed to ease in July,
boosting bets the BoE will keep rates higher for longer.

Currency bid prices at 10:31AM (1431 GMT)

 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

Commodities Markets

Gold at 5-month low as higher yields, rate-hike bets dominate mood

Gold prices slipped to a five-month low on Thursday as factors such as
rising Treasury yields, a firm dollar and a hawkish view on interest rates
from Federal Reserve officials weighed on investor sentiment.

Spot gold was down 0.16% at $1,888.70 per ounce, its lowest level since
March 15. U.S. gold futures slipped 0.5% to $1,919.30.

"Gold has been down over the course of the last several sessions due to
rising interest rates and bond yields," said David Meger, director of metals
trading at High Ridge Futures, adding, "we did see a bit of bargain-hunting
at these levels."

"We noticed yesterday in response to the FOMC minutes the market portended
that the Federal Reserve still might need to be a bit more aggressive than
previously expected in regards to continuing to raise rates."

Minutes of the Fed's July 25-26 meeting on Wednesday showed most
policymakers continued to prioritize the battle against inflation, while few
participants cited risks to the economy if rates were pushed too high.

The expectation that U.S. interest rates will likely be higher for longer
has boosted benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields to their highest since
October, making non-yielding bullion less attractive for investors.

Also hurting gold, the dollar held close to its highest level in two months.

Data showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment
benefits fell last week, pointing to a still tight labor market.

"Markets are looking for cracks in the U.S. labor market to really change
the current trajectory and until such time, bullion may remain under
pressure," DailyFX analyst Warren Venketas wrote in a note.

Silver gained 1.3% to $22.66 an ounce, its biggest daily increase since July
31, while platinum rose 1.2% to $893.01. Palladium edged 0.3% higher at
$1,212.09.

INVESTORS DIARY 2023

Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

Border Timbers

EGM

4 - 12 Paisley Road, Southerton, Harare, or virtually
:https://escrowagm.com/eagmZim/Login.aspx" 

August 18 - (10am)

zIMBABWE

2023 harmonised elections

August 23

Counters trading under cautionary

CBZH

GetBucks

EcoCash

Padenga

Econet

RTG

Fidelity

TSL

FMHL

ZBFH

Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

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DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls 'n Bears, a division of
Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not
constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or
subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has
been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or
warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All
opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without
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