Equity Market Crossed N30trn as Investors Gain N207bn
As investors gained about N207 billion, the equity segment of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) crossed N30 trillion mark on Monday, first time in years, despite the ongoing 2023 election jittery.
Stockbrokers said the market maintains a positive trajectory after a large gain reported last week even while the presidential election remains inconclusive. According to trading data from the Lagos bourse, market capitalisation advanced by N207 billion or 0.69 per cent to close at N30.140 trillion compared with N29.933 trillion on Friday.
Also, the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 379.21 points, representing an increase of 0.64 per cent to close at 55,328.42 from 54,949.21 posted at the previous trade. The upturn was impacted by gains in stocks such as BUA Foods and Tier-one stocks such as Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), and Stanbic IBTC Bank, amongst others.
As a result, the Year-to-date (YTD) return rose to 7.96 per cent. Market sentiment as measured by market breadth was positive with 28 gainers relative to nine losers. Stanbic IBTC Bank, C&I Leasing and Oando led the gainers’ chart in percentage terms by 10 per cent each to close at N37.95, N3.63 and N4.40 per share respectively.
Conoil followed with a gain 9.98 per cent to close at N46.85, per share. MRS rose by 9.09 per cent to close at N33.50 per share. On the other hand, FTNCOCOA Processors drove the losers’ chart by 6.9 per cent to close at 27k per share.
UPDC followed with a decline of four per cent to close at 96k, while Japaul Gold & Ventures depreciated by 3.45 per cent to close at 28k, per share. Transcorp declined by 3.08 per cent to close at N1.26, while Mutual Benefits Assurance depreciated by 3.03 per cent to close at 32k per share.
The total volume of trades increased by 26 per cent to 149.78 million units, valued at N1.54 billion exchanged in 3,186 deals. Transactions in the shares of Oando topped the activity chart with 14.29 million shares valued at N62.64 million.
Transcorp followed with 11.72 million shares worth N14.74 million, while Fidelity Bank traded 10.73 million shares valued at N53.73 million. Chams Plc traded 10.29 million shares valued at N2.86 million, while United Bank for Africa (UBA) transacted 9.1 million shares worth N77.14 million.
Stock analysts said market activities were mixed on the first trading day of the new week. The total volume traded for the day grew by +25.76%, while the total value traded for the day was reduced by 38.34%. Atlass Portfolios Limited reported that approximately 149.78 million units valued at ₦1,542.50 million were transacted in 3,186 deals
Likewise, NGX sector performance closed positive, as all the five major market indices garnered traction. The market index was led by the Consumer goods sector (+2.39%), the Oil & Gas sector (+1.42%), the Insurance sector (+1.07%), the Banking sector (+0.48%), and the Industrial sector (+0.08%).
