Equities investors gain N97.9bn as NGX ASI adds 1.2%

The local stock market sustained its upward momentum this week, with the All-Share Index rising by 0.15 per cent to close at 104,788.35 basis points, bringing the year-to-date return to 1.81 per cent.

On Tuesday, bullish sentiments persisted in the local bourse as gains in Presco, MTN Nigeria Communications and Guaranty Trust Holding Company caused a 0.81 per cent increase in the benchmark index.

Market capitalization mirrored this growth, increasing by 0.15 per cent to N64.89 trillion, adding N97.9 billion in gains to the equities market by session close.

Consequently, the Month-to-Date returns and Year-to-Date returns settled at 0.3 per cent and +1.8 per cent, respectively.

Buoyed by the market’s positive performance, market breadth remained strong, as 38 stocks advanced while 23 declined.

Leading the gainers were Red Star Express, Universal Insurance, Beta Glass, Northern Nigeria Flour Mills and Chellaram, posting gains of 10.00 per cent, 10.00 per cent, 9.98 per cent, 9.98 per cent, and 9.89 per cent, respectively.

On the other hand, Ikeja Hotel, NEM Insurance, Sunu Nigeria Assurance, Consolidated Hallmark Holdings and Royal Exchange topped the list of laggards. Sectoral performance was mixed.

The Banking, Consumer Goods, and Industrial Goods indices saw gains of 0.03 per cent, 0.16 per cent, 0.61 per cent, and 0.05 per cent, respectively, while the Insurance, Oil & Gas, and Commodity indices declined by 0.52 per cent, 0.01 per cent, and 0.33 per cent.

Trading activity was subdued, with the number of deals and total volume declining by 0.08 per cent and 7.61 per cent to 14,600 deals and 471.71 million units, respectively.

However, total transaction value surged by 50.07 per cent to N19.89 billion.

First Bank of Nigeria Holdings was the most traded stock by volume at 83.08 million units, while Geregu Power was the most traded stock by value at N8.29 billion.

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