Market Comment - 12.05.2022

Bloodbath on the bourse... The market closed the penultimate session of the week in a bloodbath as twenty-four counters registered losses against a mere nine risers. The All-Share Index was down 4.87% to 22942.36pts while, the Old Industrials lost a further 4.91% to settle at 75603.31pts. The Blue-Chip Index was the major casualty amongst its kind as it let go 5.86% to 14780.46pts while, the Mid-Cap Index shed 2.15% to close at 40820.84pts. ZB Financial holdings led the laggards of the day as it dipped 14.71% to settle at $81.0217 while, Meikles followed on a 14.58% slump to $205.0000. First Mutual Holdings trimmed 12.84% to trade at $19.0000, post the release of its Q1 trading update in which the insurer registered a 36% surge in revenue to $212.06m. Mashonaland Holdings closed the day pegged at $3.2025 after retreating 12.53%. Bankers CBZ went down 9.11% to $129.9677 as it capped the top five fallers of the day. Leading the winners of the day was Fidelity Life Assurance that buttressed prior sessions’ gains by 8.11% to $20.0000, trailed by Art holdings that advanced 6.57% to $23.0000. Tea manufacturer Tanganda put on 4.89% to close at a vwap of $243.5115 while, hotelier African Sun rose 1.08% to $12.1304. Rainbow Tourism Group capped the top five gainers’ list on a 0.08% lift to $7.4500. Activity aggregates declined in the session as reflected in turnover that dipped 79.44% to $224.61m while, volumes traded dropped 63.31% to 1.61m shares. Econet, Edgars and Delta were the most sought-after stocks as the duo claimed a combined 57.25% contribution of the volumes traded. Heavies Econet and Delta accounted for 39.85% and 25.56% of the value aggregate respectively. The three ETFs traded mixed in the session, as Datvest MCS and the Old Mutual ETF declined 4.77% and 0.80% respectively while, the Morgan and Co ETF increased 13.95% to $25.0000. Elsewhere, on the VFEX, Bindura was stable at US$0.0475 as 38,370 shares exchanged hands.