Stock market registers growth in quarter one

Kampala- Uganda Securities Exchange has registered a growth of 500 per cent in quarter one of 2015. This was supported by increased activities amid high equity prices at the stock exchange.
This means shareholders are making profits out of their investments in company shares, while the high growth rate to the exchange means the market is expanding.

In an interview with Daily Monitor after presenting Bank of Baroda’s results for the financial year 2014, on Tuesday, the chief executive officer of Uganda Securities, Mr Paul Bwiso, said: “In the first quarter, USE turnover was Shs64 billion compared to Shs17 billion in the same period last year. This represents a growth rate of 500 per cent in the first quarter of this year.”

Mr Bwiso said majority of the growth came from Umeme and dfcu counters, which witnessed increased activities during the period.

Turning to Bank of Baroda of Uganda, Mr Bwiso said the bank’s share price has since January increased from Shs118 per share to Shs130 per share, representing a growth of 11 per cent.

During the period, he said there were 3.6 million shares traded on Bank of Baroda counter out of 68 deals which generated a total turnover of Shs486 million.
Trading in shares on Uganda is still done manually with plans to automate it being traced as far back as 2010. Currently, trade is done on a whiteboard using markers.

Bank of Baroda of Uganda was listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange in November 2002.

The bank’s net profit rose to Shs36.9 million in 2014, up from from Shs30.9 million. Explaining the performance, the bank’s managing director, Mr Birbal Singh Dhaka, said: “Deposits increased by 27.58 per cent in 2014 to Shs826.1 million from Shs647.5 million in 2013.”

The bank has been paying little dividends to shareholders arguing that it is reinvesting the profit back in the bank.

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