BlackRock's Investment Spurs NSE to ~40% Gain in 2024, Tops in Africa

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) experienced significant movements last week, with the NSE All Share Index (ASI) rising by +5.74% to 107.66 points. In contrast, Egypt's EGX 30 index fell by -7.22% to 29,054.96 points. The world's largest asset manager, BlackRock, has begun investing in the NSE, contributing to its notable performance. BlackRock's investment has been highlighted as a key factor in the NSE's recent success, with the exchange up approximately ~40% in USD terms in 2024, making it the best-performing stock market in Africa. Additionally, the NSE equities market recorded its highest single-day turnover of the year, with KES 3B on a volume of 141M shares, where Safaricom accounted for 61% of the day's turnover. BlackRock's involvement is seen as a significant endorsement of the Kenyan market, with the company managing around >US$9.0 trillion in assets. This move is expected to have a major impact on foreign direct investments in Kenya.