The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) closed the week at its strongest levels in years as market capitalization crossed KSh 2.6 trillion for the first time since February 2022.
- •The NSE All Share Index ended at 165.66, its highest since February 21, 2022, while NSE 20 Share Index rose to 2,670.48, a level last seen on January 15, 2020.
- •The NSE 25 closed at 4,279.56, its highest since August 30, 2018, and the NSE 10 hit an all-time high of 1,635.00 since its inception in September 2023.
- •Ten companies closed at or above 52-week highs in the session, reflecting broad participation in the rally.
NSE 20 is up 32.82 percent, the NSE 10 has risen 26.28 percent, and the NSE 25 has advanced 26.36 percent. The rally has been supported by strong corporate earnings, robust dividend announcements, and renewed foreign investor demand following improved macroeconomic stability.
Broad Market Strength
BAT Kenya traded at KSh 446.00, BOC Kenya at KSh 95.00, Car & General at KSh 31.90, CIC Insurance at KSh 4.00, DTB Bank at KSh 85.00, Eveready East Africa at KSh 1.62, Jubilee Holdings at KSh 290.00, KCB Group at KSh 55.00, and NSE PLC at KSh 11.00. Another counter also set a fresh annual high.
KCB’s rally followed the declaration of a record mid-year dividend of KSh 4.00 per share, split equally between an interim and special payout. The lender’s H1 2025 profit rose 8 percent to KSh 32.33 billion, while its total equity crossed the KSh 300 billion mark to KSh 306.8 billion, a first for any bank in East and Central Africa.
BAT’s rally is buoyed by book closure ahead of an interim dividend of KSh 10.00 per share set for August 29. The payout, doubled from previous years, breaks out of the KSh 3.50–5.00 range maintained since 2018. BAT’s interim profit after tax rose 40 percent to KSh 2.98 billion for the half year ended June 30, 2025.
Car & General Kenya reported a 920% surge in profit after tax to KSh 637 million for the six months ended June 30, 2025, up from KSh 62 million in H1 2024. The board approved an interim dividend of KSh 0.30 per share, the company’s first in at least two decades.
Ending the week, the top five gainers on a week-on-week basis were Eveready East Africa (+52.83%), Car & General (+29.67%), HF Group (+26.30%), Olympia Capital (+21.48%), and Sameer Africa (+17.13%).
Eveready East Africa topped the week’s gainers with a 52.8 percent rise, flipping its position from a year-to-date loss of 20.9 percent as of July 28 to a 40.9 percent gain by Friday’s close.
Outlook
Foreign investors have been net buyers for two consecutive weeks, with inflows of KSh 329.21 million in the week ended August 15 and KSh 264.47 million in the week ended August 8.
Traders say strong momentum in dividend-yielding blue chips is attracting both retail and institutional inflows. Improved liquidity in the secondary market and easing interest rate pressures are also helping equities outperform fixed income assets.
The NSE expects the single-share rule to deepen retail participation and enhance market liquidity, with Friday’s market activity suggesting investors are already responding to the reform.
