The Nigerian stock market experienced its first weekly decline last week, shedding N395 billion in market value as investors intensified profit-taking. The All-Share Index (ASI) closed at 165,512.18 points, down 0.37% from the previous week’s 166,129.50 points, reflecting soft investor sentiment following a period of strong gains. Market capitalization similarly contracted to N105.959 trillion from N106.354 trillion.
Sector performance mirrored this cautious mood. The NGX Consumer Goods index dropped by 2%, while the Banking sector lost 1.3%. Industrial Goods and Insurance indices were slightly lower at 0.1% each, while the Oil & Gas sector stood out with a 1.4% gain, signaling selective investor interest in energy stocks.
Despite the overall downturn, there was still some positive momentum in individual stocks. DEAP Capital Management & Trust surged 60.09% to N7.14 per share, SCOA Nigeria gained 59.73% to N23.80, and NCR Nigeria rose 46.36% to N188.15. On the flip side, Eterna led the decliners with an 11.92% loss to N28.45, followed by Secure Electronic Technology and Industrial & Medical Gases Nigeria, down 10.19% and 9.95% respectively.
Trading activity slowed compared to the previous week, with 3.748 billion shares worth N99.865 billion exchanged across 237,179 deals. The Financial Services sector dominated turnover, accounting for nearly 46% of volume and 45% of value, while the Services and ICT sectors contributed smaller but notable shares to market activity. Leading equities like Secure Electronic Technology, Tantalizers, and Access Holdings represented almost 20% of total traded volume.
Looking ahead, analysts expect the Nigerian stock market to remain range-bound as cautious investor sentiment persists. Cowry Assets Management Limited and Futureview Group highlighted that investors are likely to focus on fundamentally strong and dividend-paying stocks, while Cordros Research noted that ongoing earnings releases could create stock-specific volatility. Overall, the market’s year-to-date return of 6.36% suggests that downside risks may be contained for well-performing companies.
source: Thisday