Africa-Press – Namibia. The total value traded on the Namibian Securities Exchange (NSX) was N$6.2 billion in 2024, a significant decrease from N$8.2 billion in 2023.
According to the Bank of Namibia’s Financial Stability Report, which was launched last week, the NSX local index experienced lower trading volumes than the overall index during 2024.
“However, the NSX local index has outperformed the NSX overall index in the first quarter of 2025,” reads the report.
The report showed that dual-listed stocks outperformed primary listings during this period.
A “dually-listed stock” refers to a company whose shares are traded on more than one stock exchange.
“The underperformance of the NSX local index compared to the overall index was impacted by price declines in its highest-weighted stocks, particularly in the financial services and manufacturing sectors,” reads the report.
The overall index increased to 1 801.2 index points in December 2024, up from 1 633.3 index points recorded in December 2023. This reflected an annual price increase of 10.3%.
The report showed that trading activity in 2023 was the third lowest in the past decade followed by 2024.
“The persistently low trading volumes in 2024 contributed to subdued volatility in the [overall index], as reduced market participation and lower trading activity typically result in decreased price fluctuations,” says the report.
Additionally the local index saw growth, going up to 691.3 index points in December 2024 from the 671.7 index points recorded in December 2023.
“Following the subdued trading activity in 2024, market conditions improved slightly in the first quarter of 2025, with a notable pick-up in trading volumes,” reads the report
Total value traded on the local index increased to N$128.7 million in the first three months of 2025, up from N$123.8 million recorded during the last three months of 2024.
Additionally, during the first three months of 2025, a total of N$1.5 billion was traded on the overall index.
However, despite the increased volumes, trading activity is still off to a slow start.
According to the central bank, this could be attributed to several factors, including global uncertainty surrounding tariffs and the potential impacts on domestic markets, and the latest policies of the new political administrations.
“These factors could potentially delay major investment decisions and dampen overall market participation, as investors may adopt a wait-and-see approach to fully gauge the market’s direction,” reads the report.
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