Nigerian Stock Market Falls 0.08% As Investors Lose N101bn

The Nigerian equities market returned to negative territory on Wednesday as investors lost about N101 billion following sell-offs in several major stocks after two straight sessions of gains.

Losses in key equities including Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, Jaiz Bank Plc, Chemical and Allied Products Plc, Union Dicon Salt Plc and Haldane McCall Plc weighed on overall market performance.

At the close of trading on the Nigerian Exchange Limited, market capitalisation declined to N126.097 trillion from N126.198 trillion recorded in the previous session, representing a loss of N101 billion or 0.08 per cent.

Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) dropped by 158.74 points, or 0.08 per cent, to settle at 196,463.22 points, down from 196,621.96 points recorded on Tuesday. Despite the decline, the market maintained a year-to-date return of 26.25 per cent.

Market breadth closed negative as 37 stocks recorded losses compared to 22 gainers.

On the losers’ chart, Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc and Jaiz Bank Plc topped the list after each shed 10 per cent to close at N74.70 and N10.80 per share respectively.

Chemical and Allied Products Plc declined by 9.97 per cent to N84.85 per share, while Union Dicon Salt Plc dropped 9.94 per cent to N14.95. Haldane McCall Plc also fell by 9.89 per cent to close at N3.92 per share.

On the gainers’ side, Premier Paints Plc led the table with a 10 per cent increase to close at N12.10 per share. Fortis Global Insurance Plc rose by 9.73 per cent to N1.24, while UAC of Nigeria Plc gained 7.78 per cent to close at N115 per share.

Other notable gainers included Eterna Plc, which advanced by 6.38 per cent to N35, and Custodian Investment Plc, which added 6.06 per cent to close at N70 per share.

Trading activity weakened compared to the previous session. Total volume traded declined by eight per cent, while the value of transactions dropped by 14 per cent. The number of deals also fell by 18 per cent.

Investors exchanged 805.3 million shares worth N38.4 billion in 71,312 deals, compared with 880 million shares valued at N44.5 billion traded in 86,761 deals on Tuesday.

Veritas Kapital Assurance Plc recorded the highest trading volume with 56.42 million shares, accounting for 7.01 per cent of the total market turnover.

Meanwhile, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc led in transaction value with trades worth N7.08 billion, representing 18.42 per cent of the total value exchanged during the session.