Nigerian Stock Market Extends Losses as Investors Lose N440bn

The Nigerian stock market closed lower on Thursday as investors lost N440 billion following another round of profit-taking in some large and mid-cap stocks.

At the end of the trading session, market capitalisation fell by 0.30 per cent from N155.417 trillion to N154.977 trillion.

The All-Share Index also dropped by 712.67 points to settle at 240,037.80 points, compared with 240,750.47 points recorded at the close of trading on Wednesday.

Despite the decline, the market’s year-to-date return stood at 54.25 per cent.

Market sentiment remained negative, with 29 stocks recording losses against 14 that closed higher.

International Energy Insurance topped the losers’ chart after shedding 9.85 per cent to close at N4.30 per share.

WAPIC followed with a 9.84 per cent decline to N2.30, while Fortis Global Insurance lost 9.76 per cent to finish at N1.85.

AVA Capital dropped 7.89 per cent to N7.00, while Zichis Agro Allied Industries declined by 7.36 per cent to close at N17.00 per share.

Haldane McCall led the gainers after rising by 9.38 per cent to N3.85.

Trans-Nationwide Express gained 8.90 per cent to close at N3.06, while McNichols advanced by 8.33 per cent to N5.20 per share.

Cutix appreciated by 2.56 per cent to N2.40, while Veritas Kapital Assurance rose by 1.52 per cent to close at N1.34.

Trading activity increased significantly during the session, with investors exchanging 2.87 billion shares valued at N33.99 billion in 34,725 deals.

This represented a sharp increase in volume from the 1.19 billion shares worth N37.82 billion traded in 34,546 transactions on Wednesday.

The volume of shares traded rose by about 140.65 per cent, although the total value of transactions declined.

Fortis Global Insurance dominated trading by volume, with 2.56 billion shares exchanged, representing about 88.98 per cent of the total shares traded.

Aradel Holdings recorded the highest value of transactions for the day, with trades worth N6.23 billion, accounting for 18.32 per cent of total market turnover.

Thursday’s performance showed that selling pressure remained strong on the Nigerian Exchange, despite the substantial increase in trading activity.