The bears dictated proceedings in the domestic bourse, as profit-taking activities dominated market performance, with the All-Share Index (ASI) recording declines on all the trading days of the week.
Precisely, the ASI of the Nigerian Exchange Limited NGX) declined by 2.6 per cent week-on-week (WoW) to close at 42,167.91 basis points.
Notably, selloffs of large caps MTN Nigeria, Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Holding Company, Seplat Energy and Stanbic IBTC Holdings drove the weekly loss, as the shares of the companies dipped by 12.1 per cent 3.5 per cent, 3.6 per cent, 6.5 per cent and 2.6 per cent respectively.
Consequently, the Month-to-Date (MTD) and Year-to-Date (MTD) return settled at -2.5 per cent and -4.7 per cent, respectively.
Last week, activity levels were weaker, as trading volumes and value decreased by 62.8 per cent, w/w and 43.9 per cent w/w, respectively.
A total turnover of 1.278 billion shares worth N17.340 billion in 21,052 deals were traded during the week by investors on the floor of the Exchange, in contrast to a total of 3.435 billion shares valued at N30.915 billion that exchanged hands during the preceding week in 21,109 deals.
The Financial Services Industry, measured by volume, led the activity chart with 984.543 million shares valued at N10.247 billion traded in 11,029 deals; thus contributing 77.01 per cent and 59.09 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively. Consumer Goods Industry followed with 78.724 million shares worth N2.328 billion in 3,137 deals. The third place was The Conglomerates Industry, with a turnover of 48.730 million shares worth N69.840 million in 647 deals.
The performances across sectors were broadly negative, as the Oil & Gas, Banking, Consumer Goods and Industrial Goods dipped by 4.5 per cent, 2.3 per cent, 0.6 per cent and 4.5 per cent, while the Insurance index recorded appreciated by 3.0 per cent.
Analysts, however, expect bearish sentiments to remain predominant at the local bourse this week without any positive triggers to turn the tide for Nigerian equities.
“Nonetheless, we reiterate the need for positioning in only fundamentally sound stocks as the weak macro environment remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings,” Cordros Capital Analysts said.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
FALSE! Yoruba Not An Official Language In Brazil
Claim: A national newspaper and multiple online platforms claim Brazil has adopted Yoruba as its official language and that the language would be included in primary and secondary schools curriculum.
Verdict: The claim is false. The content of the article published by these online platforms is not new; it has been recirculated several times and has been debunked.Bears persists at NGX as ASI sheds 2.6 per cent (WoW)
Bears persists at NGX as ASI sheds 2.6 per cent (WoW)