NAIROBI, Aug 31 – Kenya’s Nairobi Securities Exchange extended its strong 2026 rally last week, pushing total market capitalisation to a record KSh4.17 trillion (about $32.3 Billion) as Safaricom Plc reached its highest share price in more than four years.
Market capitalisation increased by KSh61.82 billion ($477.89 million) during the week, rising from KSh4.106 trillion to KSh4.168 trillion. The advance came despite a sharp correction in Car & General, the exchange’s strongest-performing stock this year, and weaker overall trading activity.
The Nairobi All Share Index (NASI) gained 1.51% to close at 248.38, lifting its year-to-date return to 33.12%. The NSE 20 Index advanced 1.78% to 4,309.45.
All major equity indices remained in positive territory for the year. The Banking Index led with a 40.12% year-to-date gain, followed by the NSE 20 at 37.28%, the NSE 10 at 37.05% and the NSE 25 at 35.64%. Overall market capitalisation has increased 41.56% since the beginning of 2026.
Safaricom was a major driver of the latest gains. The telecommunications company rose 4.12% during the week to KSh37.85 after reaching KSh38 during Friday trading. That was its highest price since February 2022.
At the closing price, Safaricom’s market value stood at approximately KSh1.52 trillion, accounting for more than one-third of the NSE’s total market capitalisation. The stock also dominated trading activity, representing 46.01% of total weekly equity turnover.
Banking stocks also maintained substantial valuations. KCB Group closed unchanged at KSh93.50, giving the lender a market capitalisation of approximately KSh300.46 billion after it crossed the KSh300 billion threshold the previous week. Equity Group Holdings ended at KSh93.25, valuing the company at about KSh351.89 billion.
The strongest reversal came from Car & General, which declined in every trading session during the week. The stock fell approximately 9.9% during each of the first four sessions and ended the week down 37.40% at KSh234.25.
Despite the steep weekly decline, Car & General remains the best-performing stock on the NSE in 2026, with a year-to-date gain of 359.31%. Africa Mega Agricorp follows at 145.74%, while Shri Krishana Overseas has gained 145.10%. Shri Krishana Overseas rose 14.61% during the latest week to close at KSh20.
The broader market rally was accompanied by considerably lower trading activity. Equity turnover dropped 53.34% to KSh5.81 billion, while traded volume declined 46.62% to 171.87 million shares.
Foreign investors also turned net sellers, recording an outflow of KSh921.84 million during the week. This reversed the KSh2.62 billion net inflow recorded during the previous week.
Activity in Kenya’s fixed-income market remained stronger. Treasury bills attracted KSh56.74 billion in bids against KSh28 billion on offer, while yields declined across all three maturities.
In the foreign-exchange market, the Kenyan shilling remained relatively stable at KSh129.47 per US dollar. However, the country’s foreign-exchange reserves declined to $14.93 billion, equivalent to 6.2 months of import cover.
