Equities trading at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) experienced a midweek reversal in upward momentum as the All-Share Index climbed 0.97 percent to close at 108,609.51 basis points, bringing the year-to-date return to 5.52 percent. Market capitalisation also rose by 0.75 percent to ₦67.68 trillion, driven by the cancellation of 166,948,153 ordinary shares (Treasury Shares) of Dangote Cement Plc.
As a result, the company’s total issued and paid-up shares decreased from 17,040,507,405 to 16,873,559,252. This development contributed ₦504.7 billion in gains to the equities market by the session’s close. Consequently, the Month-to-Date and Year-to-Date returns settled higher at +3.9% and +5.5%, respectively. Despite the market’s overall strength, investor sentiment remained negative, as reflected in the market breadth, with 25 stocks advancing while 28 declined.
Leading the gainers were BUA Foods, RTBriscoe, Eternal, Sunu Assurance Nigeria and Veritas Capital, having appreciated in share value by 9.91 percent, 6.91 percent, 6.25 percent, 6.13 percent, and 6.03 percent, respectively. Conversely, University Press, International Energy Insurance, Union Dicon Salt, McNicholas and Daar Communication led the list of decliners. Sectoral performance was largely positive, with the Insurance, Consumer Goods, and Oil & Gas sectors posting gains of 0.29 percent, 4.16 percent, and 0.03 percent, respectively.
However, the Banking sector dipped slightly by 0.61 percent, while the Industrial and Commodity sectors remained flat. Trading activity slowed, as the number of deals, total volume, and transaction value declined by 8.49 percent, 15.90 percent, and 23.35 percent, respectively. A total of 12,970 deals were recorded, with a transaction value of ₦8.63 billion and a volume of 343.72 million units.
ALSO READ TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
and then