The Nigerian equities market remained in negative territory on Wednesday, as investors lost N74 billion amid sustained sell pressure across major stocks on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).
The downturn was largely driven by losses recorded in RT Briscoe, ABC Transport, Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO), Vitafoam, Haldane McCall and 49 other equities.
As a result, market capitalisation declined by N75 billion, or 0.06 per cent, dropping from N124.827 trillion at the opening of trading to N124.753 trillion at the close.
Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) fell by 114.41 points, representing a 0.06 per cent dip, to close at 194,370.20 compared to 194,484.61 recorded on Tuesday. Despite the decline, the Year-To-Date (YTD) return stood at 24.91 per cent. Market breadth closed negative with 54 losers against 22 gainers.
RT Briscoe and ABC Transport topped the losers’ chart with a 10 per cent decline each, closing at N10.35 and N6.75 per share respectively. Skyway Aviation Handling Company trailed closely with a 9.98 per cent drop to close at N139.35 per share. Vitafoam and Haldane McCall also shed 9.93 per cent each, settling at N112.50 and N3.99 per share.
On the gainers’ side, Jaiz Bank led with a 9.95 per cent increase to close at N14.03 per share. Okomu Oil followed with a 9.93 per cent gain, closing at N1,765, while Trans-Nationwide Express rose by 9.77 per cent to finish at N2.36 per share.
Fortis Global Insurance appreciated by 9.72 per cent to settle at 79 kobo, while Champion Breweries gained 5.39 per cent to close at N17.60 per share.
In terms of trading activity, a total of 1.4 billion shares valued at N46.2 billion were exchanged in 70,222 transactions. This compares with 1.1 billion shares worth N53.4 billion traded across 72,218 deals on Tuesday, reflecting a decline in transaction value and number of deals, despite an increase in volume.
Fortis Global Insurance recorded the highest volume of the day with 193.69 million shares traded, accounting for 14.27 per cent of total volume. Meanwhile, Zenith Bank led in value terms with N11.07 billion worth of shares traded, representing 24.40 per cent of the total value traded.
