Skip to main content

Frontier financial markets recover some ground

A combination of improving investor sentiment and a pick-up in global commodity prices has underpinned a recovery in frontier financial markets in recent weeks. Since reaching a two-year low in early January, the MSCI Frontier Markets Index has risen by more than 8% (in local currency terms). Over the same period, 21 of the 31 equity markets that we cover have risen. The best performers have been concentrated in commodity-exporters, notably Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia.

Frontier market currencies have also performed fairly well. The Argentine peso has led the way following the news that the government has agreed a provisional deal with holdout creditors from the 2001/2 sovereign default. The one major exception is Venezuela, where the bolivar’s primary rate was devalued by 37% in an effort to ease the pressure on the public finances.

Become a client to read more

This is premium content that requires an active Capital Economics subscription to view.

Already have an account?

You may already have access to this premium content as part of a paid subscription.

Sign in to read the content in full or get details of how you can access it

Register for free

Sign up for a free account to gain:

  • Unlock additional content
  • Register for Capital Economics events
  • Receive email updates and economist-curated newsletters
  • Request a free trial of our services


Get access