Nigerian equities investors experienced a notable downturn on Friday, as significant sell pressures across various sectoral indexes led to a loss of approximately N48 billion on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) trading platform. This bearish close marked the end of the trading week, with key performance indicators showing a dip.
Market Snapshot: A Dip in Key Indicators
The local bourse concluded the week on a negative trajectory, as both the market capitalization and the All-Share Index registered declines. The market capitalization, a crucial measure of the total value of all listed shares, decreased by N48 billion, or 0.07 per cent, settling at N70.462 trillion. This is a reduction from the N70.510 trillion recorded at the close of trading on Thursday.
Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI), which reflects the overall performance of the stock market, also dropped by 0.07 per cent, shedding 76.07 points to close at 111,742.01. This is down from 111,818.08 posted on Thursday. The downward movement was largely attributed to profit-taking and sell-offs in several heavyweight stocks that typically influence market direction.
Drivers of the Decline: Heavyweight Stocks and Market Breadth
The decline witnessed on Friday was primarily propelled by sell-offs in prominent stocks. Companies such as Beta Glass, NCR Nigeria, Conoil, and Legend Internet were among the 37 stocks that experienced significant price depreciation. The market breadth, a ratio of advancing to declining stocks, underscored the negative sentiment, closing with more decliners (37) than gainers (28).
Beta Glass led the pack of losers, declining by 10 per cent to close at N232.65 per share. NCR Nigeria also saw a 10 per cent loss, finishing the session at N6.57 per share. Conoil dropped by 9.99 per cent, settling at N298.10, while Legend Internet fell by 9.94 per cent to close at N6.16 per share. Additionally, Industrial Medical Gases shed 9.91 per cent, ending the session at N33.65 per share. These substantial drops in individual stock prices contributed significantly to the overall market depreciation.
Bright Spots Amidst the Bearish Trend: Top Gainers
Despite the widespread losses, some stocks managed to defy the bearish trend and record gains. Omatek emerged as a top gainer, growing by 9.86 per cent to settle at 78k per share. Red Star Express also climbed significantly, gaining 9.62 per cent to close at N8.32 per share. Deap Capital Management rose by 9.38 per cent, finishing at N1.05, and Sovereign Trust Insurance soared by 9.09 per cent, ending the session at N1.08 per share. May and Baker also saw an increase of 8.26 per cent, closing at N11.80 per share, offering some respite for investors in those particular counters.
Trading Activity: High Volume, Significant Value
Friday's trading session was characterized by a substantial volume of transactions. A total of 1.90 billion shares, valued at N64.14 billion, were traded across 18,653 transactions. This represents a significant increase in both volume and value compared to Thursday's figures of 556.45 million shares worth N17.17 billion exchanged across 18,505 deals.
United Bank for Africa (UBA) dominated the activity chart, with an impressive 1.41 billion shares valued at N49.02 billion changing hands. United Capital followed with 66.84 million shares valued at N1.32 billion, while Access Corporation traded 53.97 million shares worth N1.19 billion. Other active counters included Fidelity Bank, which traded 31.38 million shares valued at N606.09 million, and Zenith Bank, with 29.93 million shares worth N1.46 billion.
Sectoral Performance: Broad-Based Declines
The bearish sentiment was broadly reflected across various sectors of the Nigerian Exchange. Five out of the six main sectoral indexes closed in the red, indicating a widespread decline in investor confidence. The Oil and Gas index recorded the steepest decline, falling by 0.90 per cent. This was followed by the Consumer Goods index (-0.49%), Insurance index (-0.41%), Banking index (-0.36%), and Industrial Goods index (-0.16%).
Weaker sentiments in key stocks within these sectors drove the indices lower. Notable contributors to these declines included OANDO (-5.83%), DANGSUGAR (-4.64%), CORNEST (-3.53%), GTCO (-2.90%), and BETAGLAS (-10.00%). The commodity index, however, remained unchanged, providing a solitary stable point in an otherwise declining market. The week's close paints a picture of a market grappling with sustained sell-offs, leaving investors to ponder the direction of the NGX in the coming trading sessions.