Stock market investors suffered a significant loss of N345 billion as sell-offs hit major companies, including Transcorp, Eterna, United Capital, and Dangote Sugar Refinery. Data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed that the market’s year-to-date return declined, pushing key performance indicators downward.
The All-Share Index (ASI), which measures overall market performance, dropped by 550.88 points, a 0.51% decrease, closing at 106,904.25. Despite the market downturn, trading activity increased, with the total volume and value of shares traded rising by 28.36% and 21.18%, respectively.
According to Atlass Portfolios Limited, investors exchanged approximately 395.47 million shares worth ₦8.76 billion across 13,967 transactions. United Capital (UCAP) led in trading volume, accounting for 10.28% of all shares traded, followed by Ellah Lakes (6.63%), Zenith Bank (6.51%), Universal Insurance (5.58%), and Access Holdings (4.61%). In terms of value, Zenith Bank was the most traded stock, making up 14.05% of the total transaction value.
Among gainers, NEM Insurance recorded the highest price increase at 8.78%, followed by Ikeja Hotel (+8.72%), Consolidated Hallmark (+6.76%), Livestock Feeds (+4.53%), and International Breweries (+4.00%). However, 44 stocks saw price declines, with Eterna, Transcorp, Dangote Sugar, Guinea Insurance, and DEAP Capital each losing 10% of their value.
Other major decliners included Champion Breweries (-9.93%), UCAP (-7.50%), Vitafoam (-6.38%), Africa Prudential (-6.24%), and Oando (-4.94%). Overall, the market closed negatively with 16 gainers and 44 losers. Sector-wise, the banking sector led the decline, falling by 1.80%, followed by consumer goods (-0.37%) and oil & gas (-0.36%). The insurance and industrial sectors managed to edge up by 0.73% and 0.01%, respectively.
By the close of trading, the Nigerian Exchange’s total market capitalization had dropped by N344.96 billion (0.51%), settling at N66.94 trillion.
