Ghana Stock Exchange closes 2020 with -16.9% returns for investors

The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) closed 2020 with a year-to-date returns of -16.99% for investors.

The low performance of the local bourse in 2020 is attributed to the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on the market as well as recovery from the financial sector crisis.

The -16.9% returns is however better than the -20% return in the eight months of 2020.

The Accra Bourse witnessed an improvement in its performance in the last quarter of the year, as investor appetite rebounded translating in an improvement in some stock prices.

The stock market had in the greater part of the year gone through some turbulent times, largely because of the negative effect of the coronavirus pandemic which compelled many foreign investors who are active players on the GSE to shift their investments into gold and other safe haven assets.

During periods of pandemics and uncertainties, investors are mindful of large risk exposures of equity markets, and prefer investing in assets such as gold and other minerals.

According to the weekly stock market update prior to the end of 2020, Standard Chartered Bank, Ecobank Ghana and GCB Bank pushed up the level of the GSE-Composite Index to close the year with a year-to-date loss of -13.98% in cedi term.

Consequently, the GSE’s market capitalization was also boosted to end the year at Ghs 54.4 billion, as against about Ghs 56 billion at the beginning of the year.

Meanwhile on the continent, the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) for the year 2020 was the best performing stock market with a year-to-date return of 21% in dollar term for investors.

It was followed by the Malawi Stock Exchange and Tunisia’s TUNINDEX with annual returns of 2.29% and 0.38% respectively. 

The Lusaka Stock Exchange was however the worst performing stock market on the African continent with a year-to-date of -39% in dollar term.

List of stock markets in Africa and their positions for 2020 (dollar term)