Trading on the Nigerian stock market closed on a positive note yesterday, marking a strong start to the week with a gain of N369 billion.
The All-Share Index (ASI) climbed by 588.43 points, reflecting a 0.56% increase to settle at 105,551.39 points. Similarly, market capitalisation rose by N369 billion, closing at N66.189 trillion.
The market’s uptrend was driven by gains in medium- and large-cap stocks, including MRS Oil Nigeria, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), McNichols, Oando, and First HoldCo.
Looking ahead, United Capital Plc noted, “The equities market is expected to improve marginally as investors position for the full-year 2024 earnings season and possible corporate action declarations. Nevertheless, given the elevated interest rate environment in the fixed-income market, we still expect bearish sentiments to linger in the background.”
Market sentiment, as measured by market breadth, remained positive, with 25 stocks advancing against 22 decliners.
Top Gainers and Losers
Royal Exchange led the gainers’ chart with a 10% increase, closing at 88 kobo per share. Livestock Feeds followed, appreciating by 9.87% to N9.24, while Abbey Mortgage Bank gained 9.72% to close at N3.95 per share. Other top performers included Universal Insurance, which rose by 9.62% to 57 kobo, and SUNU Assurance, which climbed 9.22% to N5.45 per share.
Conversely, NEM Insurance led the losers, shedding 9.63% to close at N12.20 per share. United Capital followed with a 9.29% drop to N16.60, while CWG declined by 6.67% to N8.40 per share. DAAR Communications and Africa Prudential also recorded losses, depreciating by 6.06% and 5.56% to close at 62 kobo and N15.30 per share, respectively.
Trading Activity
The total volume of shares traded increased by 10.90%, reaching 440.520 million units valued at N10.470 billion, exchanged across 10,182 deals.
Zenith Bank led trading activity with 55.063 million shares worth N2.605 billion. FCMB Group followed, recording 49.587 million shares valued at N449.085 million, while United Bank for Africa (UBA) traded 47.381 million shares worth N183.564 million.
Access Holdings and Fidelity Bank also saw significant trading volumes, exchanging 37.234 million and 31.298 million shares valued at N834.092 million and N563.895 million, respectively.
With investors anticipating corporate earnings reports, market performance in the coming sessions will likely reflect a balance between bullish momentum and cautious sentiment.
