- Eight Stocks Decline as Ghana Equities End September On Weaker Breadth
Trading activity on the Ghana Stock Exchange slowed sharply on Wednesday, September 30, as weaker volumes in MTN Ghana shares and losses across eight equities pulled down market momentum at the end of the month.
Total market turnover fell to GH¢25.33mn from GH¢50.97mn in the previous session, representing a decline of just over 50 per cent, according to the exchange’s official list.
The volume of securities traded dropped by 39.5 per cent to 5.12m from 8.46m on September 29.
The contraction largely reflected reduced activity in Scancom Plc, which trades as MTN Ghana. The telecommunications company recorded 3.51m shares valued at GH¢22.84m, down from 7.48m shares worth GH¢48.71m in the preceding session.
Despite the decline, MTN Ghana remained overwhelmingly dominant, accounting for about 69 per cent of total market volume and slightly more than 90 per cent of turnover by value.
The company’s share price edged down by GH¢0.01 to GH¢6.50, extending its pullback after closing at GH¢6.54 on September 28 and GH¢6.51 on September 29.
The concentration of activity in one counter continues to expose a structural weakness in the local equities market. Although the headline turnover appears substantial, most listed companies attract limited daily trading, leaving overall market liquidity highly dependent on a small number of securities.
Excluding MTN Ghana, the rest of the market generated turnover of approximately GH¢2.49mn.
Three ordinary shares advanced during the session, while eight declined and the remainder were unchanged.
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated was the strongest performer, gaining GH¢0.11 to close at GH¢1.73. This represented an increase of approximately 6.8 per cent from its previous closing price of GH¢1.62.
The recovery followed a decline in the preceding session, when ETI fell from GH¢1.66 to GH¢1.62. Wednesday’s gain therefore restored the stock above both levels, although turnover remained moderate at 76,112 shares valued at GH¢131,119.
Kasapreko Plc gained GH¢0.03 to GH¢1.84 on 112,238 shares valued at GH¢204,874. The beverage producer has continued to attract relatively consistent trading interest since joining the market, with the latest price leaving it 53 per cent above its year-low of GH¢1.20 but still below its GH¢2.30 year-high.
Ecobank Ghana recorded the third gain, rising marginally by GH¢0.01 to GH¢39.01. Only 1,671 shares changed hands, generating turnover of GH¢65,183.
The session’s market breadth nevertheless remained firmly negative, with declines concentrated across banking, insurance, petroleum and telecommunications stocks.
Ghana Oil Company recorded the largest price decline in percentage terms among ordinary shares, falling GH¢0.44, or 7.2 per cent, to GH¢5.66.
The petroleum-marketing company traded 8,152 shares valued at GH¢47,299. Its closing price remained substantially above its GH¢2.96 year-low but was almost 29 per cent below the GH¢8.01 year-high.
The fall is notable because GOIL’s operating environment is closely connected to movements in crude oil prices, refined-product costs and the cedi. Elevated international energy prices and renewed pressure on the local currency could affect expectations about import costs, fuel margins and working-capital requirements.
Societe Generale Ghana declined by GH¢0.32, or 5.8 per cent, to GH¢5.18. The stock traded 16,032 shares worth GH¢83,401.
SIC Insurance fell GH¢0.24 to GH¢4.80, a decline of 4.8 per cent, while CalBank slipped GH¢0.01 to GH¢0.70.
CalBank was the second-most actively traded ordinary share by volume, with just over 1.04m shares changing hands for GH¢730,692. This was a substantial increase from the 172,500 shares traded in the previous session, showing that investor interest remained high even as its price weakened.
Clydestone Ghana and Dannex Ayrton Starwin also lost GH¢0.01 each, closing at GH¢4.00 and GH¢1.15 respectively.
GCB Bank declined GH¢0.04 to GH¢40, while MTN Ghana’s GH¢0.01 fall completed the list of decliners.
Enterprise Group emerged as one of the more active stocks outside MTN Ghana and CalBank. The insurer traded 75,407 shares valued at GH¢554,241 but closed unchanged at GH¢7.35.
The company had gained GH¢0.35 in the preceding session, meaning Wednesday’s unchanged price may indicate that the market was consolidating after the earlier advance.
Other relatively active stocks included Kasapreko, ETI and several companies on the Ghana Alternative Market.
Intravenous Infusions led GAX activity with 165,273 shares worth GH¢87,577, but its price remained unchanged at GH¢0.53. Digicut traded 52,490 shares valued at GH¢24,629 and also closed unchanged at GH¢0.47.
The GAX counters recorded no price movement during the session.
NewGold, the exchange-traded fund tracking the international gold price, traded 111 units valued at GH¢51,324 and closed unchanged at GH¢462.38.
Wednesday’s trading data suggest that the market ended September with weaker breadth and a steep fall in liquidity, but not a generalised sell-off.
The reduction in turnover was primarily caused by a decline in MTN Ghana activity from the unusually high level recorded in the previous session. However, the eight-to-three imbalance between declining and advancing ordinary shares indicates that the underlying tone was cautious.
The losses in GOIL, Societe Generale Ghana and SIC were relatively large, but most other price movements were modest. This suggests selective profit-taking and portfolio adjustment rather than broad investor panic.
The market’s more persistent concern remains concentration. MTN Ghana generated nine out of every 10 cedis traded on Wednesday, while several listed companies recorded no transactions.
Such concentration means headline turnover can rise or fall dramatically without signalling an equivalent change in sentiment across the full market.
In the coming sessions, investors will be watching whether demand broadens beyond MTN Ghana and a small group of banking and consumer stocks. They will also assess the implications of currency weakness, international oil prices and domestic interest rates for corporate earnings.
The September 30 session ultimately offered a mixed conclusion to the month: liquidity weakened, market breadth deteriorated and several stocks suffered visible losses, but selected counters such as ETI and Kasapreko continued to attract buyers.
The more important test for the market will be whether October brings deeper participation across listed companies or merely another cycle in which one dominant stock determines the appearance of activity for the entire exchange.
