The Nigerian Stock Exchange closed lower on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, as the All-Share Index (ASI) slipped by 0.18%, shedding 189.73 points to end the day at 104,187.00. The decline marks a pullback from the previous day’s close of 104,376.73.
Market capitalization followed suit, easing to ₦65.4 trillion from ₦65.5 trillion, as investors reassessed positions across large-cap equities.
Despite the overall market dip, select stocks such as LIVESTOCK and VFDGROUP posted strong performances, each gaining 10% to top the gainers’ chart. NGXGROUP, WAPIC, and UNIONDICON also recorded notable increases, advancing by 9.86%, 9.60%, and 9.48% respectively.
Decliners Dominate Broader Market
On the downside, HMCALL and LEARNAFRCA led the laggards, both declining by 10%. Other significant losers included ETI (-9.90%), PZ (-9.88%), and UNILEVER (-9.75%).
Drop in Market Activity
Trading activity slowed, with volume dropping by 18.23% to 376.6 million shares compared to the 460.5 million shares exchanged the previous day. The total number of transactions also declined to 11,576.
Top Traded Stocks by Volume
- GTCO led the day’s activity with 62.8 million shares traded, valued at ₦4.09 billion.
- ACCESSCORP followed closely with 51.3 million shares exchanged, worth ₦1.05 billion.
- ZENITHBANK, UBA, and MBENEFIT rounded out the top five with 32.3 million, 22.5 million, and 18.1 million shares traded respectively.
Notable Trading Values
In terms of value, ZENITHBANK contributed ₦1.5 billion, MTNN ₦1.1 billion, and UBA ₦775.1 million, reflecting continued investor interest in key financial and telecom stocks.
Sector Watch: SWOOT and FUGAZ Stocks
Within the SWOOT category:
- OANDO gained 6.58%
- WAPCO dipped slightly by 0.35%
Among FUGAZ banking stocks:
- GTCO fell 1.74%
- UBA dropped 2.58%
- FIRSTHOLD declined 2.38%
- ZENITHBANK rose by 3.30%
- ACCESSCORP remained flat
Outlook
The ASI remains in a short-term retracement below the 105,000 psychological threshold. However, the market may stabilize if large- and mid-cap equities sustain their upward momentum. Investors are closely watching corporate earnings and macroeconomic signals for direction.
Despite the day’s dip, the year-to-date performance remains positive at +1.22%, indicating cautious optimism among market participants.
