The Nigerian stock market witnessed a downturn yesterday, extending losses from the previous session, with overall capitalization dipping by N268 billion.
The Nigerian Exchange Limited All Share Index (NGX ASI) experienced a decline of 475.18 basis points, representing a 0.48% drop, to close at 98,228.50 points. This downturn in the index contributed to the reduction of market capitalization to N55.555 trillion, marking a N268 billion decrease.
As a result, the Month-to-Date return for the NGX ASI remained flat, while the Year-to-Date return moderated to +31.4%.
In sectoral analysis, the NGX Banking Index saw a decline of 3.1%, the NGX Insurance Index dropped by 1.5%, and the NGX Consumer Goods Index depreciated by 0.7%. However, the Industrial Goods and Oil & Gas indices closed flat.
Market sentiment, as measured by market breadth, ended negative as 15 stocks advanced while 28 declined. Notable gainers included Japaul Gold & Ventures, May & Baker Nigeria, and Presco, which each recorded a 10% increase in share price.
On the flip side, Unity Bank led the losers with a 10% decline in share price, followed by FBN Holdings and Champion Breweries, which both saw a decline of 9.91% each. Livestock Feeds and Wapic Insurance also recorded significant decreases in share price.
Trading activity saw a marginal increase, with the total volume traded rising by 0.93% to 425.664 million units, valued at N8.349 billion, and exchanged in 9,620 deals. United Bank of Africa (UBA) dominated the activity chart in terms of volume, followed by Access Holdings and Transcorp.
Despite the challenges faced by the stock market, investors continue to navigate market dynamics, seeking opportunities amid profit-taking and sectoral shifts.
