Investors on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) witnessed a sharp downturn on Wednesday, losing ₦444 billion in market value as renewed sell pressure pushed major indices into the red. The decline marked a significant setback in the equities market’s year-to-date performance as sentiment weakened across several key sectors.
The All-Share Index fell by 698.56 points — a 0.49% drop — closing at 143,064.57. Total market capitalisation also slipped to ₦90.99 trillion after heavy selloffs dragged down stock valuations.
The downturn was triggered largely by profit-taking activities in companies such as BUACEMENT, AIICO, STERLINGNG, IKEJAHOTEL, and CADBURY. Market analysts say investor caution has intensified following recent monetary policy actions by the Central Bank and rising global economic uncertainties.
Despite the market decline, trading activity accelerated, with transaction volume and value rising by 32.76% and 89.89%, respectively. In total, 738.35 million shares worth ₦35.54 billion were exchanged across 19,919 deals.
GTCO led the volume chart with 18.18% of all shares traded, followed closely by ACCESSCORP at 14.98%. FIRSTHOLDCO, UBA, and NB also ranked among the most actively traded stocks. The financial services sector dominated the value chart as well, accounting for over 32% of total market turnover.
On the gainers’ table, AIICO topped the list with a 10% increase, followed by NCR (+9.96%), IKEJAHOTEL (+9.41%), PRESTIGE (+7.38%), STERLINGNG (+6.85%), and MANSARD (+6.83%), among others.
However, 27 equities posted losses. LEARNAFRICA led the decliners with a 10% drop, followed by CADBURY (-9.92%), MEYER (-9.91%), UPDC (-8.83%), INTBREW (-8.33%), and MBENEFIT (-7.46%).
Market breadth ended positive with 28 gainers against 27 losers, even though the broader market closed lower.
Sectoral performance was mixed:
- Insurance gained 2.66%
- Banking edged up 0.24%
- Oil & Gas rose 0.17%
- Industrial Goods declined 2.03%
- Consumer Goods dipped 1.33%
Analysts say the day’s decline reflects investor repositioning ahead of macroeconomic developments and corporate earnings releases.
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