The Nigerian equities market extended its bearish run on Wednesday, with market capitalization falling by N260 billion as renewed sell-offs weighed on major stocks.
The decline came in the first trading session after the Eid el-Maulud public holiday, with the All-Share Index also dropping by 402.25 points, while market breadth remained negative with 41 losers against 17 gainers.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that market capitalization declined by 0.17 per cent from N154.396 trillion to N154.136 trillion at the close of trading.
Similarly, the All-Share Index fell by 0.17 per cent to close at 238,682.92, compared with 239,085.17 recorded on Monday. Consequently, the market’s year-to-date return slipped to 53.38 per cent.
Heavy declines in Fidson, FTN Cocoa Processors, International Energy Insurance, Livestock Feeds, Omatek Ventures and 36 other stocks pushed the market into negative territory.
Fidson led the losers’ chart in percentage terms, declining by 9.99 per cent to close at N84.20 per share. FTN Cocoa Processors followed with a 9.94 per cent loss to close at N7.79 per share, while International Energy Insurance declined by 9.74 per cent to N3.15.
Livestock Feeds shed 9.43 per cent to close at N7.20, while Omatek Ventures lost 9.42 per cent to close at N1.25 per share.
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On the gainers’ side, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals led in percentage terms, advancing by 9.66 per cent to close at N7.95 per share.
Nem Insurance followed with a 6.67 per cent gain to close at N32 per share, while Regency Alliance Insurance rose by 6.25 per cent to 85k per share.
Linkage Assurance gained 5.62 per cent to close at N1.88, while UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust rose by 2.88 per cent to N14.30 per share.
Despite the decline in market indicators, trading activity improved across volume, value and the number of deals executed.
A total of 733.35 million shares valued at N34.52 billion changed hands in 49,210 transactions, representing a 9.67 per cent increase in volume from the 668.72 million shares worth N23.83 billion traded in 45,894 deals on Monday.
Fortis Global Insurance recorded the highest trading volume, with 134.01 million shares exchanged, accounting for 18.27 per cent of the day’s total volume.
First HoldCo led trading by value, with shares worth N11.06 billion changing hands, representing 32.04 per cent of the total value traded.
