The Nigerian equities market closed Thursday in negative territory, with investors losing an estimated ₦357 billion as widespread sell-offs hit several key stocks listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX). The bearish sentiment, driven by heavy sell-side activity, pushed the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) down by 39 basis points, ending the trading session at 145,300.01 points and dragging other performance metrics lower.
Market analysts attributed the downturn to renewed selling pressure on select mid- to large-capitalised stocks, which weighed on overall market performance. Consequently, the year-to-date return eased to 41.17%, though it remains well above Nigeria’s annual inflation rate.
The day’s losers included Wema Bank, AXA Mansard Insurance, AIICO Insurance, NGX Group, Custodian Investment Plc, Dangote Sugar Refinery, Cadbury Nigeria, NEM Insurance, and United Capital Plc. Other notable laggards were Sterling Financial Holdings, Transcorp Plc, FCMB Group, Oando Plc, Zenith Bank, and Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO).
In total, 50 stocks closed in the red, with the insurance sector leading sectoral declines. The market index fell by 498.45 basis points to settle at 145,367.03 points. However, trading activity surged, with total transaction volume and value climbing by 81.71% and 7.69% respectively. According to data from Atlass Portfolio Limited, investors exchanged approximately 1.44 billion shares worth ₦21.77 billion in 43,164 deals.
UNIVINSURE emerged as the most active stock by volume, accounting for 15.91% of total shares traded. It was followed by AIICO Insurance (9.64%), Linkage Assurance (8.73%), Mutual Benefits Assurance (6.42%), and Regal Insurance (4.48%).
In value terms, Nigerian Breweries led with 8.41% of total traded value. On the gainers’ chart, Juli Plc topped with a 10% price increase, followed by Austin Laz (+9.91%), NCR Nigeria (+9.43%), Thomas Wyatt (+8.19%), Chams Plc (+8.06%), and RT Briscoe (+5.88%).
Among the biggest decliners were C&I Leasing, LASACO Assurance, Sovereign Trust Insurance, UPDC, and Wema Bank — each shedding 10% in share value. AXA Mansard followed closely with a -9.96% drop, alongside AIICO (-9.89%), NGX Group (-8.66%), Custodian (-8.54%), Dangote Sugar (-7.89%), and Cadbury Nigeria (-4.70%).
The market breadth closed firmly negative, recording 22 gainers against 50 losers. Sector-wise, the Banking Index dropped by 0.48%, Insurance fell sharply by 8.26%, Consumer Goods slid by 0.20%, and Oil & Gas eased by 0.11%. The Industrial Goods sector inched higher by 0.11%, while the Commodities Index remained flat.
Despite the price downturn, trading momentum improved markedly, with the number of deals rising 41.52% to 43,515, traded volume increasing 83.01% to 2.46 billion units, and turnover value up 9.90% to ₦22.22 billion. The total market capitalisation closed at ₦91.93 trillion, reflecting the day’s ₦357 billion decline in investors’ wealth.
