The FTSE Group has predicted that the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) will see increased foreign investment over the coming year, following results which saw the NSE outperform other emerging market indices.

Information compiled by the FTSE Group reported that the NSE FTSE 15 and NSE FTSE 25 indices both performed significantly better than other emerging market indices being tracked by the global index and data company.

This has led FTSE to its prediction that 2013 will see a spike in international investors flocking to the NSE.

“Interestingly both the FTSE NSE Kenya 15 Index and the FTSE NSE Kenya 25 Index had a superior performance to the FTSE ASEA Pan Africa Index (excluding South Africa) and the FTSE All-World Index series,” said FTSE Group Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa, Jonathan Cooper, reports Business Daily.

“Such performance will only continue to highlight the investment opportunity of Kenya to investors globally,” he predicted.

In 2012, the amount of net purchases on the NSE by foreign investors totalled 21.73 billion Kenyan Shillings ($251 million); an already positive figure given that the country is currently under international scrutiny as its next election approaches – the first since the infamous elections in 2007 which saw the wide-spread outbreak of tribal violence across the country.

The upcoming elections in themselves could have been enough to deter investors from the Nairobi market, both in terms of 2012 results and with a view to 2013 predictions.  However, with the NSE’s strong performance in the year-end results for 2012, contrary to expectations, the FTSE Group believes investors will be more attracted by Kenyan investment prospects than ever before.

The top five performers of the NSE FTSE 15 and 25 in descending order were the KCB Group, Safaricom, EABL, Equity Bank and KenolKobil.

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