Equities extend losses as investors lose N556bn

The Nigerian equities market extended its downward trend on Wednesday, with investors losing N556 billion as sell-offs in several heavyweight stocks pushed key market indicators into negative territory.

The market capitalisation of listed equities fell by N556 billion, representing a 0.36 per cent decline, from N155.973 trillion on Tuesday to N155.417 trillion at the close of trading.

Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) shed 860.76 points, or 0.36 per cent, to close at 241,611.23, compared with 240,750.47 recorded in the previous session.

The decline pulled the market’s year-to-date return down to 54.71 per cent.

Losses recorded by International Energy Insurance, Aradel, Universal Insurance, Red Star Express, Royal Exchange and 22 other stocks contributed significantly to the market’s bearish performance.

International Energy Insurance led the losers’ table, declining by 10 per cent to close at N4.77 per share. Aradel followed with a 9.99 per cent drop to N1,374.20, while Universal Insurance fell by 9.41 per cent to 77 kobo.

Red Star Express declined by 9.26 per cent to N14.70, while Royal Exchange lost 8.62 per cent to close at N1.06 per share.

Despite the broader market decline, some stocks recorded gains. Haldane McCall led the gainers, rising by 10 per cent to N3.52 per share.

WAPIC gained 8.44 per cent to close at N2.44, while UAC of Nigeria advanced by 6.56 per cent to N177.85.

AVA Capital rose by 6.29 per cent to N7.60, while Caverton Offshore Support Group appreciated by 5.32 per cent to N4.95 per share.

Market breadth closed evenly balanced, with 27 stocks recording losses and an equal number of 27 stocks posting gains.

Trading activity, however, strengthened significantly during the session. Total volume traded increased by 177.65 per cent to 1.19 billion shares, valued at N37.82 billion, exchanged across 34,546 deals.

Fortis Global Insurance accounted for the largest share of the trading volume, with 610.68 million shares traded, representing 51.17 per cent of the total volume.

MTN Nigeria dominated trading by value, recording transactions worth N8.12 billion, equivalent to 21.47 per cent of the total value traded.

The session reflected continued pressure on the equities market despite the strong volume of transactions, with investors balancing renewed activity against declines in several major stocks.

(NAN)