Nigeria’s capital market, despite the depressive trend in the nation’s economy for most part of this year, has been rated among the best stock markets globally in the 2017 fiscal year.
The CNN in a report on the global bourses’ performances on Wednesday, stated that Nigeria, Argentina, Turkey and Hong Kong were the best bourses, adding that the majority of the best performing stock markets this year are located in the emerging markets.
However, it noted that the United States of America’s stock was an exception.
The news medium network reported further that Nigeria stocks were on a first-class ride into record territory in 2017. This is even as many analysts expressed optimism about the sustainability of the stocks’ impressive performance in 2018.
According to the report, the Nigerian All-Share Index (ASI) recorded a 43% rally in 2017 as against the index performance in 2015 and 2016 as low oil prices, militant attacks, currency troubles, elections and Ebola hit investor sentiment.
Commenting, Zin Bekkali, founder and CEO of Silk Invest, a United Kingdom firm that provides investment, financial advisory services said: “But oil prices have moved higher, the central bank has made it easier to swap currencies and the economy has snapped out of recession.
“If you look at where we stand today, the [Nigerian] market is still one of the cheapest markets on the planet”, Bekkali added.
It is noteworthy that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been supporting the Nigeria stock market and curbing risks and maintaining tight monetary policy with its forex policy management as a policy option of promoting the nation’s financial system stability.
