Emmanuel Ochayi
The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) experienced a downturn in the equities market, resulting in a drop in market capitalisation by N140 billion. The losses were primarily attributed to declines in Stanbic IBTC, MTN Nigeria, and 23 other stocks.
In the latest trading session, the market capitalisation of listed equities decreased by 0.4%, falling from N37.004 trillion to N36.864 trillion.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe All Share Index (ASI) also saw a decline, dropping by 254.43 basis points to 67098.80 points from 66353.23 points on the previous trading day.
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Key contributors to this decline included major stocks like Stanbic IBTC, Nestle, NASCON, Nigerian Breweries, MTN Nigeria, and Accesscorp. Vetiva Dealings and Brokerage pointed out, “With WTD return at a negative 15bps, we are likely to see the market close the week in the red, as investors take profit on recent gainers.”
Afrinvest noted that investor sentiment, measured by market breadth, weakened significantly, with 19 stocks advancing and 16 declining. This shift in sentiment is expected to result in a negative market close for the week.
Looking at individual stock performances, Learn Africa emerged as the leading gainer with a 10% increase, closing at N3.30 kobo.
On the other hand, Mcnichols experienced the most significant loss, dropping by 8.82% to close at 62 kobo. Stanbic IBTC was down by 8.49% to close at N69.55 kobo.
In terms of trading activity, investors traded 298.687 million shares valued at N4.483 billion in 5453 deals. United Bank for Africa led market activities, with 56.287 million shares valued at N1.053 billion, followed by Fidelity Bank with 33.882 million shares worth N282.308 million.
The market’s performance in the near future remains uncertain, with sentiments leaning towards further losses due to weakening investor confidence.
Emmanuel Ochayi is a journalist. He is a graduate of the University of Lagos, School of first choice and the nations pride. Emmanuel is keen on exploring writing angles in different areas, including Business, climate change, politics, Education, and others.
