Investors Lose N443bn as Nigerian Stock Market Downturn Enters Ninth Day

The Nigerian stock market extended its losing streak to nine consecutive trading sessions on Friday, with investors losing more than N443 billion as sustained selling pressure pushed the local bourse deeper into bearish territory.

The market closed the week on a negative note, with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index (ASI) declining by 0.29 per cent.

The downturn, which persisted throughout the week, was driven by continued sell-offs across major market sectors. Mid-cap and blue-chip stocks, including FCMB, DANGSUGAR, ZENITHBANK and FIRSTHOLDCO, recorded significant losses during Friday’s session.

The NGX All-Share Index fell by 686.64 points, or 0.29 per cent, to close at 239,351.16. Similarly, market capitalisation declined by N443.32 billion to close at N154.53 trillion.

On a week-on-week basis, the overall market recorded a bearish performance, with the NGXASI falling by 1.35 per cent. Investors’ wealth also declined by approximately N2.09 trillion during the week.

Trading activity was mixed, as total volume of trades declined by 85.49 per cent, while the total value of transactions increased by 4.81 per cent.

Stockbrokers reported that approximately 416.67 million units, valued at N35.63 billion, changed hands in 36,324 deals.

STERLINGNG topped the volume chart, accounting for 12.03 per cent of total units traded. It was followed by NGXGROUP with 9.26 per cent, FIRSTHOLDCO with 8.18 per cent, ACCESSCORP with 5.77 per cent and UBA with 4.96 per cent.

SEPLAT emerged as the value driver, accounting for 26.91 per cent of the total value of transactions, making it the most actively traded stock by value on the exchange.

On the gainers’ chart, RTBRISCOE led with a 9.63 per cent increase, followed by FTGINSURE, which gained 8.11 per cent, TRANSEXPR, up 7.84 per cent, MEYER, which rose 5.98 per cent, ARADEL, up 5.71 per cent, and CADBURY, which gained 4.68 per cent, alongside 16 other stocks.

A total of 25 stocks recorded price declines during the session.

INTENEGINS was the worst-performing stock, shedding 10.00 per cent, followed by OMATEK, which fell 9.55 per cent, MCNICHOLS, down 6.73 per cent, UPDC, which declined by 5.63 per cent, WAPIC, down 5.45 per cent, and CMFC, which lost 5.39 per cent.

Consequently, market breadth closed negative, with 22 gainers against 25 losers.

Sectoral performance was also largely negative, with three of the five major sectors recording declines.

The banking sector led the losses, falling by 0.80 per cent, followed by the insurance sector, which declined by 0.69 per cent, and the consumer goods sector, which shed 0.03 per cent.

In contrast, the oil and gas sector gained 2.54 per cent, while the industrial goods sector recorded a marginal increase of 0.001 per cent.