Investors in the Nigerian Stock Market have lost about N281 billion of their investment in the past eight months as the financial market caves in to the pressure of the current economic recession.
The market capitalisation, which represents the value of total investment in the stock market by investors, dipped by N281 billion or 2.9 per cent from N9.850 trillion it opened in the first trading day of January 2016 to close at N9.569 trillion last week Friday, Vanguard reports.
While the All share index slippedby 2.7 per cent or 783.77 points from 28, 642.25 points it opened in January to close last week at 27,599.03 points.
Meanwhile, stockbrokers have said that the on-going economic recession continues to affect the financial market with dire consequences on the income streams of the capital market operators and has given them concern for their continued existence.
“There is a deep concern that the current operating environment characterised by high interest rate, weak purchasing power, poor corporate earnings, unstable exchange rate , high inflation rate and investors’ apathy among others are fast eroding our dwindling income fuelling speculation that many of us may be pushed completely out of the business,” stockbrokers said.
So, if the government does not intervene appropriately we may be forced to go out of business and this will affect our employees and put them in the unemployment market.”
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Standard Union Securities, Mr. Sehinde Adenagbe said it would be difficult for stockbrokers to break even under the current climate.
“Overhead cost is rising steadily and workers are clamouring for higher pay to cope with the high cost of living. Office rent, epileptic power supply and transport costs are of great concerns to us and there are other contending issues that are eating deeply into the incomes of stockbrokers,” Adenagbe posited.
Speaking on the survival strategy, the President and Chairman of Governing Council, Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS), Mr. Oluwaseyi Abe advocated personal development on the part of the stockbrokers in order to expand their income streams.
“Recession is a time to take a breath. Invest on knowledge this time and be moderate. Stockbrokers should be multitasking to be relevant on all platforms and Exchanges.
Also, they should not forget the age-long advice of an investment expert, Warren Buffet whose ideals covered risk taking, savings, expectation and earnings among others as survival strategy,” Abe said.
