In the local market this week, we observed positive movements in the NSX Local and NSX Overall indices. The NSX Local index increased by 1.67% to reach 664.7, while the NSX Overall Index rose by 2.47% to reach 1603.3. As of 4 July 2023, FirstRand Namibia emerged as the largest local company on the exchange, boasting a market capitalization of N$ 13.5 billion. It was followed by Namibia Breweries and Capricorn Group, both with market capitalizations of N$ 7.6 billion, and Mobile Telecommunications with N$ 5.3 billion. FirstRand Namibia led the market this week, closing at N$ 50.39 per share after experiencing a growth of 6.1%. Namibia Breweries secured the second position, closing at N$ 36.8 per share with a growth of 1.4%. In terms of trading volume, Capricorn Group dominated the market with N$ 6.6 million worth of shares traded. FirstRand Namibia secured the second spot with N$ 4.8 million worth of shares traded. Moving on to currency performance, the local currency experienced a decline of 0.77% against the US Dollar, closing at N$ 18.64 per USD. Against the British Pound, it also lost 0.51%, closing at N$ 23.70 per GBP. However, against the Euro, it only experienced a marginal decrease of 0.01%, closing at N$ 20.28.
Namibia’s latest inflation data for May 2023, as released by the Namibia Statistics Agency, sheds light on the country’s economic indicators. The annual inflation rate for April 2023 has reached 6.3%, representing a moderate increase compared to the same period last year, which registered an inflation rate of 5.4%. It is important to highlight that this figure demonstrates a slight uptick from the April 2023 inflation rate of 6.1%. The upward movement in the price index can be primarily attributed to the escalating costs of Food and non-alcoholic beverages, contributing 2.4% to the overall increase, as well as Alcoholic beverages and tobacco, accounting for 1.0% of the increase. Analyzing regional variations, Zone 1, encompassing Otjozondjupa, Kunene, Oshana, Omusati, Oshikoto, Ohangwena, Kavango East, Kavango West, and Zambezi, witnessed inflation of 6.3% compared to the previous month’s rate of 6.3%. In a similar vein, Zone 2, covering Khomas, recorded an inflation rate of 6.2%, up from 5.9% in the preceding month. Lastly, Zone 3, consisting of Omaheke, Hardap, Karas, and Erongo, experienced an increase in inflation to 6.3%, compared to the rate of 6.0% observed in the previous month.
