By Bamidele Famoofo
WorldStage— The Nigerian equities market closed mid-week on a negative note, with the NGX All-Share Index declining 1.44 percent to settle at 243,132.61 points, pulling the year-to-date return down to +56.24 percent and erasing ₦2.28 trillion from market
capitalization, which closed at ₦155.94 trillion.
Market breadth was broadly negative at 0.35x, as 43 decliners led by WAPIC, ZICHIS, JOHNHOLT, LEARNAFRICA, and CONHALLPLC outpaced 15 advancers, with ABBEYBDS, INTENEGINS,
TRIPPLEG, UNIVINSURE, and ROYALEX recording the most notable gains.
Sectoral performance was largely negative across
the board, as Insurance (-2.76%), Industrial (-1.55%), Banking (-1.53%), Consumer Goods (-0.28%), and Oil & Gas (-0.05%) all finished in negative territory, while the Commodity sector ended flat.
Trading activity was varied, as volume and
turnover climbed 28.41 percent and 44.25 percent to 922.97 million shares and ₦42.27 billion respectively, while deal count slipped 3.28 percent to 69,332 transactions.
Heading into Thursday’s session, the market is expected to sustain its bearish tone as continued profit-taking activity weighs on investor sentiment.
