The hunt for yield: tracking the big tuskers in Africa
Eurobonds offer exposure to African fixed-income markets for international investors
Delivering arguably the highest yields globally, African eurobonds (both sovereign and corporate) have benefited from the “hunt for yield” in the past decade, as investors have sought alternatives to low-interest-rate returns in more developed economies. African eurobonds returned an annualised 9.2% in US dollars (15.8% in rand) in the 10 years to July 2018, as measured by the Standard Bank Africa (ex SA) Sovereign & Corporate Bond Total Return Index. This compares favourably with the return for emerging-market dollar bond markets of 6.6% (13% in rand) and the dollar return for global bond markets in general at 2.7% (8.9% in rand), according to JP Morgan’s Emerging Markets Bond and Global Aggregate Bond indexes. SA’s BESA All Bond Index and the JSE Top 40 Index delivered annualised returns of 9.1% and 10.2%, respectively, in rand in that period. Eurobonds are one of two options for international investors seeking exposure to African fixed-income markets. The other is to invest direc...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.