The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) faced a significant market downturn on Wednesday, with investors losing over ₦930 billion as inflation concerns weighed on sentiment.
The latest inflation report, showing a spike to 34.8% in December, triggered widespread sell-offs across the market. The NGX All-Share Index dropped by 1.47%, shedding 1,526.14 basis points to close at 102,095.95. The market’s total capitalisation fell by ₦930.62 billion to ₦62.26 trillion.
The sell-offs were particularly pronounced in blue-chip stocks, with Dangote Cement (DANGCEM) and Transcorp Power (TRANSPOWER) leading the losses. Over four days, the NGX has lost ₦2.09 trillion in market capitalisation.
Trading activity also declined, with total volume and value dropping by 14.79% and 25.99%, respectively. About 435.54 million shares worth ₦9.44 billion were exchanged across 12,098 deals.
Top Gainers and Losers
UNIVINSURE led in volume, accounting for 16.44% of total trades, followed by AIICO (9.28%), ACCESSCORP (3.94%), LIVESTOCK (3.93%), and NB (3.79%). ARADEL topped the value chart with 9.62% of total trade value.
In terms of price performance, DANGSUGAR, NASCON, and SUNUASSUR led the gainers’ list with a 10% increase each, followed by SKYAVN (+9.95%) and AUSTINLAZ (+9.94%).
Conversely, the biggest losers included DANGCEM and UNIVINSURE, which fell by 10% each, alongside TRANSPOWER (-9.97%), REGALINS (-9.64%), and AFRIPRUD (-8.06%).
Sector Performance
Despite the overall market decline, some sectors showed resilience. The consumer goods sector grew by 0.99%, oil and gas gained 0.15%, and banking rose by 0.02%. However, the industrial and insurance sectors fell by 4.70% and 3.47%, respectively.
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