The Nigerian stock market sustained skidding profile on Thursday, declining by 0.41 per cent and wiping out N515 billion in investors’ wealth.
Sustained profit-taking in consumer goods, banking and insurance stocks weighed heavily on the market, with notable declines recorded in equities such as Jaiz Bank Plc, Ikeja Hotel Plc, John Holt Plc, Nigerian Enamelware Plc and Cadbury Nigeria Plc, alongside 33 other declining stocks.
Accordingly, the market capitalisation, which opened at N124.753 trillion, fell by N515 billion to close at N124.238 trillion.
Similarly, the All-Share Index dropped by 802.39 points, representing a 0.41 per cent decrease, to settle at 193,567.81 compared to 194,370.20 recorded on Wednesday. Consequently, the Year-To-Date (YTD) return moderated to 24.39 per cent.
Market breadth closed negative, with 38 losers against 30 gainers.
Jaiz Bank led the losers’ chart with a 9.98 per cent decline to close at N12.63 per share. Ikeja Hotel and John Holt followed closely, shedding 9.90 per cent each to close at N37.75 and N8.65 respectively. Nigerian Enamelware fell by 9.88 per cent to N36.50, while Cadbury dropped 9.69 per cent to settle at N61.95 per share.
On the gainers’ side, FTN Cocoa Processors Plc topped the chart with a 10 per cent increase, closing at N6.05 per share. RT Briscoe Plc advanced by 9.95 per cent to N11.38, while Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc gained 9.92 per cent to close at N6.98 per share.
Also, Japaul Gold & Ventures Plc rose by 9.91 per cent to N3.77, and Omatek Ventures Plc appreciated by 9.72 per cent to close at N2.37 per share.
Meanwhile, trading activity declined across key performance indicators. Total volume traded fell by 36.01 per cent, total value dropped by 30.58 per cent, while the number of deals declined marginally by one per cent.
A total of 868.5 million shares valued at N31.5 billion were exchanged in 69,310 deals, compared to 1.4 billion shares worth N46.2 billion traded in 70,222 transactions on Wednesday.
Jaiz Bank recorded the highest trading volume with 78.94 million shares, accounting for 9.09 per cent of total traded volume. Zenith Bank Plc posted the highest value of trades at N4.06 billion, representing 12.89 per cent of the day’s total turnover.
