After nearly a week of sustained declines, trading on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) showed a modest recovery on Tuesday, offering investors a brief respite from the bearish stretch that had dominated the market.
The session closed with a 0.10 per cent uplift in both the All-Share Index and the overall Market Capitalisation, bringing them to 143,763.13 points and N91.44tn, respectively. This translated into an estimated N94.47bn in value added to the market—a marginal but welcome improvement for participants who had endured six consecutive days of losses.
Market watchers noted that persistent profit-taking had weighed heavily on sentiment in prior sessions, keeping the bourse under pressure. Tuesday’s rebound, though mild, aligned with developments from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting, where policymakers opted to maintain the Monetary Policy Rate at 27 per cent during their final deliberation of the year. Other key parameters, including the Cash Reserve Ratio—held at 45 per cent for commercial banks, 16 per cent for merchant banks, and 75 per cent for non-TSA public sector funds—were also retained. The Liquidity Ratio stayed at 30 per cent, while the Standing Facilities Corridor was adjusted to +50 / -450 basis points around the benchmark rate.
Improved sentiment was reflected in overall market breadth, which closed positive as 26 gainers outpaced 20 laggards, giving a 1.3-to-1 ratio in favour of advancers. Leading the gainers’ chart were NCR, Ikeja Hotel, Prestige Assurance, Eunisel, and Sterling Financial Holding Company. On the flip side, Caverton, Union Dicon, Sunu Assurance, Lasaco, and Mansard stood out among the day’s decliners.
Sectoral performance was mixed. Banking equities recorded the strongest improvement with a 0.56 per cent rise, while consumer goods inched up by 0.01 per cent. Insurance counters, however, retreated by 0.84 per cent. The Oil & Gas, Industrial, and Commodity sectors held steady without significant movement.
Despite the price recovery, key indicators of market activity suggested waning momentum. Total volume traded slipped by 18.62 per cent to 556.15 million units, the value of transactions slid by 34.04 per cent to N18.71bn, and deal count dipped by 18.29 per cent to 19,500.
Analysts at Cowry Asset Management attributed the softer activity levels to reduced institutional participation, particularly fewer block trades, combined with a cautious stance from retail investors still wary of prevailing market risks.