The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) opened the new week with a positive market performance, recording an N83 billion increase in market capitalization. MTN Nigeria, one of the major drivers of this surge, saw its stock appreciate by 1.24%, closing at N253.10 per share. This contributed to the NGX All Share Index (ASI) rising by 134.18 basis points, or 0.13%, to close at 104,630.30. Overall, market capitalization increased from N64.709 trillion to N64.792 trillion.
Sector-wise, the market showed mixed results. The NGX Consumer Goods, Banking, and Industrial Goods indices saw declines of 0.6%, 0.4%, and 0.1%, respectively, while the NGX Insurance Index gained by 0.5%. The Industrial Goods index remained flat. Despite the positive overall sentiment, the market breadth was negative, with 21 stocks advancing and 35 declining.
Among the biggest gainers were Beta Glass and Presco, which each recorded a 10% rise in share price, closing at N78.65 and N643.50 per share, respectively. Other notable gainers included Okomu Oil, NNFM, and Chellaram. On the losing side, University Press led with a 10% decline, followed by Omatek Ventures and SCOA Nigeria, which dropped 9.88% and 9.83%, respectively.
Total trading volume saw a significant drop of 59.6%, with 510.569 million units of shares traded. The value of trades amounted to N13.253 billion, executed in 14,611 deals. FBN Holdings topped the trading chart, followed by Zenith Bank and Universal Insurance, with substantial volumes of shares traded. United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Fidelity Bank also contributed to the high trade volumes.
Market analysts, including United Capital Plc, anticipate that the positive momentum will continue as investors position themselves ahead of the 2024 earnings season. However, they caution that the fixed-income market’s elevated interest rates may dampen sentiment, keeping some bearish undertones in play for the near term.
Source: THIS DAY