The Nigerian equities market closed on a positive note last week as the benchmark All-Share Index (ASI) and market capitalisation rose by 0.92 per cent.
The ASI ended at 141,845.35 points, while the value of listed equities advanced to N89.74 trillion. Despite the market uptrend, turnover weakened compared to the previous week.
A total of 2.74 billion shares worth N85.20 billion were traded in 127,284 deals, down from 3.19 billion shares valued at N99.69 billion in 132,711 deals recorded a week earlier.
Sectoral performance was mixed. Most indices closed higher, but key sectors like NGX Premium, NGX Banking, NGX Pension, NGX Insurance, and NGX CG ended in the red. The banking index fell 2.57 per cent, while the insurance index dipped 4.67 per cent. The NGX ASeM index closed flat.
The Financial Services Industry dominated activity with 1.91 billion shares worth N37.83 billion traded in 56,026 deals, accounting for 69.79 per cent and 44.41 per cent of the week’s turnover volume and value, respectively. ICT followed with 184.87 million shares worth N6.19 billion in 12,893 deals, while the Services Industry ranked third with 176.51 million shares worth N813.25 million in 6,011 deals.
Abbey Mortgage Bank Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, and United Bank for Africa Plc were the most traded stocks by volume, jointly accounting for 875.82 million shares worth N16.42 billion in 11,389 deals. These represented 32.02 per cent of total equity turnover volume and 19.27 per cent of total value.
Market breadth weakened as 40 equities gained, sharply lower than 70 in the prior week. Losses increased, with 41 stocks declining compared to 22 previously, while 66 equities closed flat against 55 the week before.
Analysts noted that the modest rise in the All-Share Index reflects steady investor appetite in select sectors, even as portfolio rebalancing and profit-taking—especially in financial stocks—kept volatility in play.
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