Market Cap Heads Towards N40T as Investors Gain N464bn
The equities market capitalisation of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) headed toward N40 trillion mark on Friday as investors gained N464 billion ahead of Santa Claus rally expectation.
Detail from the Nigerian Exchange showed that the All Share Index rose by 1.18% week-on-week despite comparatively low traded volumes and a rather stagnant market breadth.
Stockbrokers said in their notes that the positive momentum propelled the All-Share Index above the psychologically significant 72,000 mark, culminating in a closing figure of 72,389.23 points.
The stock market experienced a strong rally across key sectors, namely banking, consumer goods, telecoms, energy, and industrials, according to Cowry Asset stockbrokers’ note.
In tandem with the impressive index performance, the market capitalisation advanced to N39.61 trillion. Notably, equity investors capitalised on gains totalling N464 billion over four out of the five trading sessions.
These upward movements were attributed to a surge in buying interest observed in select counters such as INFINITY, STERLINGNG, CADBURY, ACCESSCORP, ETI, and TANTALIZER, contributing to positive price movements.
On the flip side, the Insurance and Oil and Gas indexes faced minor setbacks of 0.96% and 0.27%, respectively, driven by notable price decreases in ETERNA, NEM, SUNUASSUR, and CONOIL.
Despite the market’s overall positive performance, the market recorded a 22.32% decrease in total traded volume, which settled at 1.88 billion units.
The number of trades mirrored this sentiment, declining by 4.85% to 33,020 deals, Cowry Asset said in its market report. Meanwhile, the weekly traded value nosedived by 29.82% week-on-week, closing at N31.63 billion.
According to Cowry Asset Limited, the top gaining stocks for the week included INFINITY which gained 59%, SCOA rose by 29% and STERLINGNG did 10%.
Also, CADBURY share price jumped up by 10% and ACCESSCORP advanced by 10% over four bullish against one bearish trading session. Conversely, stocks such as ETERNA lost 12%, THOMASWY was down by 11%, NEM fell by 9%, and MECURE declined by 8% week on week.
Cowry Research anticipates a continuation of positive sentiment and profit-taking, driven by bargain hunting for dividend-paying stocks.
Stockbrokers expect Market players to digest the recently published Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) report and its potential impact on the financial market, amidst sector rotation and portfolio rebalancing spurred by the high expectation for full-year corporate numbers and high yields.
