New ‘KFC Index’ provides insight into African currency valuations

The KFC Index, against USD, February 2016. The index shows overvaluation of the Angolan kwanza and Nigerian naira, while the South African rand is the most undervalued.

Sagaci Research, a pan-African market research and intelligence firm, has published a new comparative study of purchasing-power-parity (PPP) among African countries, named “The KFC Index”. Inspired by the world-renowned Big Mac Index, Sagaci Research has leveraged the presence of KFC in 18 African nations to develop the KFC Index of African currencies valuation.

By analysing the prices of the Original Chicken Bucket from KFC, the index provides insight into African currency valuations and consumer purchasing ability relative to the US, and selected European countries. The KFC Index is also a strong fact-based indicator of the financial turmoil affecting African countries, whether driven by rapidly decreasing global oil prices or other factors.

The highest prices in comparison to US prices are found in Angola and Nigeria, whose currencies are estimated to be overvalued by +72% and +47% respectively. On the other hand, the lowest prices are found in Egypt and South Africa, whose currencies are undervalued by -34% and -48% respectively.