The Nigerian equities market opened the week on a bearish note as investors booked profits from earlier gains on blue-chip stocks, resulting in a ₦94 billion dip in market capitalisation on Monday. Data from the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) showed that the market capitalisation fell to ₦98.7 trillion from ₦98.8 trillion on Friday, marking a 0.1 per cent decline. The benchmark All-Share Index also slipped by 148.90 points to close at 155,496.15.
Despite the pullback, the broader market remains on a strong upward trend. Over the past week, the NGX has posted a 3.71 per cent gain, a four-week rise of 9.4 per cent, and an impressive year-to-date return of 51.08 per cent — signaling continued investor confidence in Nigeria’s capital market. Analysts attributed the brief decline to profit-taking following recent rallies across key sectors.
Trading activity slowed compared to the previous session, with investors exchanging 502.99 million shares valued at ₦24.94 billion in 39,945 deals. This represented a 58 per cent drop in trading volume and a 21 per cent decrease in turnover, even as the number of transactions rose by 33 per cent. The financial and industrial sectors dominated market activity, led by Access Holdings with 68.9 million shares worth ₦1.62 billion, and FBN Holdings with 66.6 million shares valued at ₦2.09 billion.
On the value chart, Aradel Holdings led with trades worth ₦5.63 billion, followed by Presco (₦2.25 billion), FBN Holdings (₦2.09 billion), Dangote Cement (₦1.65 billion), and Access Holdings (₦1.62 billion). The market breadth closed negative with 25 gainers and 34 losers. Aradel Holdings gained 10 per cent to close at ₦869 per share, while NEM Insurance rose 9.67 per cent to ₦32.90. On the losing end, Deap Capital dropped 9.71 per cent, Champion Breweries shed 9.64 per cent, and PZ Cussons declined 5.94 per cent.
Sectoral performance was mixed. The Oil and Gas Index climbed 4.24 per cent, the Insurance Index gained 1.09 per cent, and the Main Board Index advanced 0.22 per cent. However, the Pension Index dipped 0.48 per cent, while the Top 30 Index fell slightly by 0.08 per cent. Last week, The PUNCH reported that the NGX saw its strongest performance in months, gaining ₦4.32 trillion in market value as renewed investor optimism lifted the bourse to new highs.
source: Punch