Nigerian stocks extended the longest rally in almost three months and dollar bonds climbed to a record after incumbent leader Goodluck Jonathan won twice as many votes as his closest rival in presidential elections.
The 202-member Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index gained for the fifth day, the longest winning streak since Jan. 25, adding 0.8 percent to 25,244.45 at 12:27 p.m. in Lagos. Eurobonds of Africa’s biggest oil producer due 2021 rose 0.3 percent to 103.007 cents on the dollar, the highest level since the debt was issued in January, sending the yield four basis points lower to 6.33 percent.
“The results this weekend will definitely add confidence into the markets in general, which will help bring some foreign flows into the country and increase demand for the sovereign bond,”Leon Myburgh, a sub-Saharan Africa strategist at Citigroup Inc. in Johannesburg, said by phone today. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they rallied a bit.”
Jonathan, 53, a Christian from the southern oil-rich Niger River delta region, garnered 22.5 million votes and won in 21 of 36 states in elections in Africa’s most-populous country, which is roughly split between a north of mostly Muslims and a largely Christian south. Jonathan’s closest rival, former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, a 68-year-old northern Muslim, received 12.2 million votes.
“News of a decisive Jonathan victory is likely to see capital flight reversed over the coming days, with positive implications for both the bond and equity markets,” CSL Stockbrokers Ltd. analysts, including London-based Guy Czartoryski, wrote in an e-mailed note to clients today. www.bloomberg.com
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