Nigerian Exchange Expands to N67.42T as Investors Gain N1.83T
The Nigerian Exchange, NGX, expanded by N1.83 trillion due to strong rally that spanned four out of five trading sessions in the just concluded week. The bullish momentum persisted for the second trading week in February, as the market index or All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 2.00% week-on-week to close at 108,053.95 points.
This rally saw the index surpass the 108,000 and 109,000 psychological levels, reaching new historic highs, driven by gains in Industrial, Insurance, and Energy and Commodity stocks. Similarly, the total market capitalisation of listed equities rose by 2.78% week-on-week to N67.42 trillion after briefly crossing the N68 trillion mark.
This was fueled by strong bargain hunting, as equity investors gained N1.83 trillion from four out of the five trading sessions this week, Cowry Asset Limited said. Ahead of inflation figure for January, the year-to-date return of the index climbed to 4.98%, with the exchange recording 64 gainers against 32 losers.
Despite the momentum, trading activity was subdued, reflecting negative market internals. Data from the local bourse revealed that the total weekly traded volume fell by 40.9% to 2.41 billion units, transacted across 80,988 deals, with a total trade value of N55.51 billion.
Trading records revealed that the market performance was mixed, with three sectors closing positive while three sectors ended in the red. The industrial index led the gainers, surged by 10.4% week-on-week, followed by the insurance index which gained +2.52% and the commodity index popped up by +0.43%.
The notable gainers in these sectors included Dangote Cement, UPDC, Beta Glass, SUNU Assurance, Presco, Transcorp Power, and Custodian. Conversely, the consumer goods index led the laggards, down by 3.63% week-on-week, followed by 2.30% decline in the Oil & Gas and banking lost 0.24%.
These losses were driven by selloffs in Aradel Holdings, Zenith Bank, BUA Foods, Julius Berger, Conoil, and FBN Holdings, as investors engaged in portfolio rebalancing, said Cowry Asset Limited. Among the top-performing stocks of the week are Honeywell Flour and UPDC led the chart, appreciating by 47.1% and 45.9%, respectively.
VFD Group followed with a 30.6% gain, buoyed by an impressive 2024 earnings release, while SUNU Assurance and Ikeja Hotel advanced by 27.9% and 24.4%, respectively. On the flip side, DAAR Communications was the worst-performing stock, declining by 13.6%, trailed by International Energy Insurance (-10.8%), BUA Foods (- 10.0%), Golden Breweries (-9.9%), and Eunisell (-9.7%).
Stock analysts at Cowry Asset Limited anticipate a mixed market sentiment in the coming week as investors await further corporate earnings releases and dividend declarations. Additionally, market participants will closely monitor the newly rebased Consumer Price Index (CPI) data and the outcome of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
The investment firm stated that these key events will provide direction for investors as they assess the potential impact on their portfolios. #Nigerian Exchange Expands to N67.42T as Investors Gain N1.83T Chinese Firm Expresses Support for $20b Ogidigben Gas Project
