Barely one hour into stock trading session on Monday March 16, investors were seen snapping value stocks that are trading at deep discounts.
Stock Market gained about N16billion as investors took early positions in Julius Berger (+9.90 percent), GTBank (+2.11 percent), and Access Bank (+6.48 percent).
The NSE ASI rose to 22,763.15points while the value of listed equities increased to N11.862trillion.
As at 10.44 am on Monday oil price was $31.41 per barrel.
“This week, seeing as the market closed up only on Friday in the previous week, we could see the market rebound, as investors dive into stocks with strong fundamentals and attractive dividend yields, given the current depressed prices.
“However, negative developments in the oil price war or coronavirus could spark further selloffs in local equities”, said market analysts at Lagos based Vetiva.
“This week, seeing as the market closed up only on Friday in the previous week, we could see the market rebound, as investors dive into stocks with strong fundamentals and attractive dividend yields, given the current depressed prices. However, negative developments in the oil price war or coronavirus could spark further selloffs in local equities”, analysts at United Capital research said.Nigeria’s stock market was down by 13.49percent in the trading week ended March 13. In value terms, this represents a loss of about N1.85trillion.
As Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread around the world, the virus is not only infecting people but also financial markets.
The Nigeria stock market entered the bear zone with record negative return of -15.30percent year-to-date (YtD).
Notably, the pressure on financial markets escalated after the OPEC+ meeting ended in a deadlock, with Saudi Arabia commencing a full-blown crude oil price war.
As a ripple effect, the spot Brent crude oil price dropped to a 4-year low (sub $40/barrel levels), prompting investors to pull out funds from risk-assets to safety assets like gold and government treasury.
Last week, NSE All Share Index (ASI) decreased from week open high of 26, 279.61 points to close the week at a record low of 22,734.07 points. Likewise, the value of listed stocks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) dipped from N13.695trillion to a new low of N11.846trillion.
With most stocks trading at deep discounts to their expected fair value in the face of massive sell pressure last week, market watchers expect a number of stocks to enjoy positive investor patronage this week.
— BUSINESS DAY