Stock market closes week higher, gains N437bn

The Nigerian stock market closed higher on Friday, gaining 0.28 per cent to extend its positive run and add N437 billion to investors’ wealth.

The gains were driven by strong performances in Abbey Mortgage Bank, UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust, Omatek Ventures, Consolidated Hallmark Holdings, Chams and 26 other equities, as market sentiment remained positive at the end of the week.

Market capitalization rose from N157.150 trillion at the opening to N157.587 trillion at the close, while the All-Share Index, ASI, advanced by 674.61 points to 243,052.74, compared with 242,378.13 recorded on Thursday.

The market’s year-to-date return also improved to 56.19 per cent. Market breadth closed positive, with 31 equities recording gains against 18 decliners.

UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust and Abbey Mortgage Bank led the gainers’ table, rising by 10 per cent each to close at N13.75 and N7.15 per share, respectively.

Also Read: Equities market rebounds, adds N101bn as Seplat leads

Omatek Ventures gained 9.60 per cent to close at N1.37 per share, while Consolidated Hallmark Holdings rose by 9.06 per cent to N6.50. Chams also advanced by 8.90 per cent to close at N3.67 per share.

On the losers’ table, John Holt declined by 10 per cent to close at N9.00 per share, while Austinlaz fell by 9.55 per cent to N1.99. Royal Exchange also dropped by 9.09 per cent to close at 90 kobo per share.

UPDC declined by 5.88 per cent to settle at N3.20 per share, while Secure Electronic Technology fell by 4.41 per cent to close at 65 kobo.

Trading activity declined across volume, value and the number of deals, with 582.89 million shares worth N25.79 billion exchanged in 45,678 transactions. This compares with 1.40 billion shares valued at N27.14 billion traded in 46,218 deals in the previous session.

Sterling Nigeria recorded the highest trading volume, with 98.78 million shares changing hands, accounting for 17.87 per cent of the day’s total volume.

Aradel led trading by value, with transactions worth N5.15 billion, representing 19.96 per cent of the total value traded.

NAN