NGX Records ₦367bn Weekly Loss Amid Market Downturn
The Nigerian Stock Exchange closed Wednesday under pressure, losing a total of N367bn as investors continued to react to market volatility.
At the close of the day’s trading session, the All-Share Index shed 623.41 points, representing a 0.45 per cent decline, to close at 138,157.14. The weekly performance reflected a 2.19 per cent loss, while the month-to-date decline stood at 5.25 per cent. Despite the setbacks, the market still recorded a year-to-date gain of 34.23 per cent.
Trading activities saw 482,752,647 shares exchanged across 28,177 deals, with a total market turnover of N19.67bn. Compared with the previous trading session on Tuesday.
This represented a 20 per cent improvement in volume and a 70 per cent rise in turnover, although the number of deals declined 10 per cent. Market capitalisation stood at N87.4 tn at the close of the week.
A total of 126 equities were active, with 14 gainers and 44 losers. Secure Electronic Technology led the gainers with a 9.09 per cent increase, closing at N0.96 per share. It was followed by Consolidated Hallmark Holdings, which rose 8.53 per cent to close at N4.20 per share; John Holt, with a 7.94 per cent increase to N6.80 per share; Cadbury Nigeria, with a 5.45 per cent gain to N58.00 per share; Wema Bank, up 5.31 per cent to N21.80; and FCMB, gaining 5.00 per cent to N10.50 per share.
On the downside, Learn Africa recorded the sharpest decline, losing 10 per cent to close at N7.02 per share. Legend Internet and Daar Communications also dropped 10 per cent each to close at N4.77 and N0.90 per share, respectively. AXA Mansard Insurance shed 9.95 per cent to N14.39, followed by University Insurance, down 9.60 per cent to N1.13, and Sunu Assurance, which lost 9.57 per cent to close at N5.01 per share.
In terms of trading volume, Access Holdings led with 43.03 million shares, followed by Fidelity Bank with 40.13 million, Guaranty Trust Holding Company with 34.85 million, United Bank for Africa with 33.43 million, and AIICO Insurance with 29.08 million shares. By value, Aradel led with N6.46 bn, followed by GTCO at N3.16 bn, UBA at N1.54 bn, Zenith Bank with N1.17 bn, and Access Holdings at N1.10 bn.
Market analysts noted that the continuous losses were largely driven by profit-taking in high-performing stocks and cautious sentiment among investors amid macroeconomic uncertainties. The sustained weekly decline highlights the pressure on investors to carefully navigate the market, especially in stocks with high volatility.