The Nigerian equity market’s bearish trend continued for the fourth consecutive session on Thursday, resulting in a N56 billion loss for investors. The All Share Index (ASI) declined by 0.10% to 97,100.36 points, while market capitalization dipped to N55.13 trillion.
The equity market began the week on Monday with a N404bn loss, of which the All Share Index declined by 0.72% to settle at 97,881.75 points.
On Tuesday, the Nigerian equity market continued its bearish trend, influenced by the declining share prices of companies like Oando, Livestock Feeds, Cornerstone Insurance Company, and Linkage Assurance, which caused it to shed 0.5%.
Also, on Wednesday, the Nigerian Exchange witnessed bearish sentiments as the All Share Index declined by 0.20%, closing at 97,199.60 points.
At the close of Thursday’s trading session, trading activity slowed, with 271.3 million shares valued at N3.52 billion exchanged in 7,233 deals, representing a 14% decline in volume, a 36% drop in turnover, and a 14% reduction in deals.
The market’s year-to-date return moderated to 31.27%, month-to-date to -0.64%, and week-to-date to -1.52%, driven by selloffs in FBN Holdings, Access Corporation, and Transnational Corporation, among others,
Bearish sentiment dominated the market, with 31 losers and 14 gainers. Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals led the gainers’ chart with a 9.55% increase at N2.18 per share, followed by TotalEnergies, which saw an 8.82% rise, while AIICO Insurance and C & I Leasing gained 6.54% and 6.07%, respectively.
Meanwhile, Oando topped the losers’ chart, declining by 9.94% at N32.60 per share. Among the other big losers were ABC Transport (-9.52%), Livestock Feeds (-9.09%), Guinea Insurance (-9.09%), and CWG Plc (-7.69%).
Veritas Kapital Assurance led trading volume, with 33.4 million shares, followed by Sterling Bank with 16.6 million, AIICO Insurance with 16.4 million, and RT Briscoe with 16.2 million.
