The Casablanca stock market has experienced a tough 2020 year.
Denominated in US dollar, the overall value of companies listed on the market was $58.9 billion at the end of October, data collected by Ecofin Agency showed. This figure was down 9.7% since the beginning of the year. In dirhams, it stood at MAD542.8 billion, the lowest level of the stock market value of the period, since 2016.
Behind this underperformance, however, data showed resilience on the second-largest stock exchange in Africa after that of South Africa. Market capitalization was down 24.3% at the end of April 2020 compared to that of January. A situation provoked by the coronavirus pandemic that imposed an almost complete closure of the Moroccan economy and caused a wave of pessimism on the stock market.
Between that period and October 2020, the valuation of companies listed on the Casablanca Stock Exchange jumped by 11.4%. This is one of the best recoveries since 2015. In 2018, market capitalization had plummeted from MAD 662.3 billion in April to MAD 557.6 billion at the end of October, when the covid-19 threat did not exist.
In detail, it is noted that the major pan-African banking groups on this exchange experienced their most significant underperformance in the last five years. At the end of October, Attijariwafa Bank had a stock market value down 24.25%, Banque Centrale Populaire (Atlantique Finance Group) was down 13.5%, and Bank of Africa 28.13%. This may be due to an anticipation of declining net margins, even though the performance of these groups outside Morocco was strong.
Idriss Linge
• Investors seem to keep focusing on yields, which are high for the moment• New Leadership might see...
• Inflation within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) fell to a two-year low of 0....
• Qatar Airways and Kenya Airways establish strategic agreement, introducing a third daily flight be...
• EY is preparing to leave Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa by 2026• The exit could unlock $500 m...
• Interbank volumes rose 18.7% in May, while rates declined across the market• The BCEAO cut its mai...
• Ghana signs a deal with eLearning Africa to expand digital learning access across the country.• The partnership focuses on deploying modern digital...
Ghana launches the Oncology Nurse Leadership Program (ONLEP) to train specialized oncology nurses from seven African countries. The five-year...
Ivanhoe Mines signs deal covering 100% of Kamoa-Kakula smelter’s copper output. The smelter will process up to 500,000 tonnes annually, starting at...
African gas projects drive significant contracts for Asian shipbuilders, especially for Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) units. South Korean...
Kolmanskop offers a haunting blend of lost wealth, colonial history, and the unstoppable force of nature. Located just a few kilometers inland from...
Located about 40 kilometers from Cape Town’s city center, Boulders Beach in Simon’s Town is one of the Cape Peninsula’s most iconic destinations. This...