Nigerian Exchange Rises by N1.12Trn to N57Trn
Year-to-date return inched near 40% as the equities market capitalisation of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) hit N57 trillion following buying interest on value, growth stocks.
The trading activities ended positive in the just concluded week with the all-share index advancing by 1.97% week-on-week to close at 104,421.23 points.
Investors gained N1.12 trillion due to buying interest in Industrial and consumer goods stocks amidst earnings releases, and dividend declarations.
The Nigerian bourse witnessed a resurgence of buying interest, particularly in banking stocks, which propelled the market beyond the psychological 104,000-point threshold.
Year-to-date, the index recorded an impressive return of 39.7%, contributing to a 2% weekly increase in the market capitalization of listed equities to N57 trillion, Cowry Asset Limited said in a note.
Buying interest on DANGCEM (+9.9%) and BUAFOODS (+4.9%) offsetting losses in ZENITHBANK (-8.1%) and UBA (-8.2%).
Despite the overall positive performance, market participation levels were robust, reflecting positive market breadth. Total traded volume increased by 30.56% to 3.89 billion units, with the number of trades rising by 1.70% to 69,117 deals. The weekly traded value saw a notable uptick, surging by 64.40% to N95.15 billion.
Top-performing stocks at the close of the week included TRIPPLE GEE (+42%), MEYER (+21%), CORNERST (+20%), JULI (+19%), and GEREGU (+15%).
Conversely, stocks like VERITASKAP (-23%), DAARCOMM (-22%), ETERNA (-20%), CADBURY (-13%), and MAYBAKER (-16%) experienced declines in their share prices, respectively.
On the sectoral front, Banking and insurance indexes retreated by 4.52% and 4.07%, respectively, primarily due to price drops in GTCO, ZENITH, ROYALEX, and NEM.
Conversely, the Industrial index outperformed, recording a 6.36% week-on-week gain, driven by increased prices and buying interest in DANGCEM and BUACEM.
The Consumer Goods Index also ended the week positively, rising by 1.30%, fuelled by upward price movements in MEYER and MCNICHOLS.
However, the Oil & Gas index witnessed a dip due to waning sentiment in ETERNA, resulting in a 2.47% decline.
Looking ahead to the coming week, market analysts at Cowry Asset Limited anticipate the continuation of positive sentiments in the local stock market.
However, they foresee a mixed trend with a possibility of profit-taking as investors are likely to continue sectoral rotation, capitalizing on stocks that experience pullbacks to position themselves strategically.
This rotation strategy is expected to create further buying opportunities, especially in anticipation of more earnings releases in the corporate reporting season, Cowry Asset Limited said. #Nigerian Exchange Rises by N1.12Trn to N57Trn#
