BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – The Eswatini Stock Exchange (ESE) All-Share Index slightly increased by 0.28 percent, from 472.77 at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023 to 474.09 at the end of the first quarter of 2024.
This is according to the 2024 First Quarter Bulletin of a Statistical Report, issued by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). According to the report, trading during the quarter was moderate, and some trades influenced the All-Share Index, resulting in its increase. However, it should be noted that share values fluctuate over time, which may cause the index to increase, decrease, or remain unchanged during a specific period.
Not much growth was observed in the country’s bond markets, both in corporate and government bonds. In the corporate bond market, the first quarter saw three new note issuances but no reopenings. Six bonds matured during the period under review, causing the cumulative corporate bonds outstanding as of March 31, 2024, to decrease to E1.542 billion, compared to the previous quarter’s outstanding amount of E1.641 billion. This marked a 6.03 percent decrease in total corporate bonds outstanding.
On a yearly basis, there was a 3.98 percent decrease in bonds trading/outstanding, from E1.606 billion at the end of March 2023 to E1.542 billion at the end of March 2024. This decline could be attributed to rising interest rates, which forced companies to reduce their appetite for debt or loans as the cost of debt capital increased.
During the period under review, the government, through the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE), maintained 29 bonds with varying maturities of 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 years. The total outstanding bond value at the end of the first quarter was E5.924 billion, reflecting a 7.71 percent decrease from the previous quarter’s close of E6.418 billion.
This decrease was due to the lower value of new bonds and reopenings, while the value of maturities was high during the period under review. Year-on-year, there was a 4.15 percent decrease in the value of bonds trading, from E6.180 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2023 to E5.924 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2024.
