DSEI vs TSI: Why the DSE Has Two Headline Numbers
If you follow the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, you'll see two index levels quoted — the DSEI and the TSI — and they often move differently. Knowing which is which changes how you read the market.
Information and education only — not investment advice.
What is the DSEI (All Share Index)?
The DSEI is the All Share Index: a market-capitalisation-weighted index of every company listed on the DSE — including the large cross-listed foreign companies (firms head-quartered elsewhere in East Africa that also trade in Dar). Because those cross-listed names are huge, they dominate the DSEI's level and movement.
What is the TSI (Tanzania Share Index)?
The TSI is the domestic index: it tracks only the Tanzanian listed companies, excluding the cross-listed foreign names. So the TSI is the cleaner read on how local companies — the banks, the brewer, the cement makers, the telco — are actually performing.
Why do the DSEI and TSI diverge?
Because they measure different baskets. When local companies rally but the big cross-listed foreign names are flat or falling, the TSI rises faster than the DSEI — and the headline All-Share number understates what local investors are actually experiencing.
That's exactly the recent picture: the domestic TSI has run well ahead of the headline DSEI over the past year. (As-at index levels — DSEI, TSI, market cap, and the year-on-year move — are shown live on our Indices page; verify the latest figures there.)
Which index should I actually watch?
It depends on what you hold:
- If you invest mainly in Tanzanian companies, the TSI is the more honest benchmark for your portfolio.
- If you want the whole-exchange picture including cross-listed names, the DSEI is the broad gauge.
- Watching both, and the gap between them, tells you whether a move is local or imported.
The takeaway
One number rarely tells the whole story on the DSE. The headline DSEI is the broad market; the TSI is the domestic engine — and the spread between them is itself a signal. We break down all five DSE index numbers, with the rebased chart, on the Indices detail page.
Where to go next
Information and education only. Nothing here is investment, legal or tax advice. Index levels are delayed and may be illustrative — verify against the live Indices page.
Sources: Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (dse.co.tz); KCP Markets — Indices.