The Nigerian stock market began the week on a bearish note, driven by profit-taking in major stocks such as MTN Nigeria and Access Holdings Plc. As a result, the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) saw a collective market capitalisation decline of roughly ₦8 billion, closing at ₦68.95 trillion by the end of Monday’s trading session.
Trading data revealed that the market’s dip stemmed from downward pressures on leading equities, particularly in blue-chip categories. Access Holdings saw its share price drop by 2.13%, bringing its valuation to ₦1.126 trillion. MTN Nigeria also shed 1.03% in value, closing at ₦5.773 trillion.
This modest correction followed a major rally the previous week, during which investors gained more than ₦600 billion. On Monday, the NGX All-Share Index edged down by 12.31 basis points or 0.01%, settling at 109,697.83 points.
Despite the downturn in key indices, market activity actually saw a notable boost. The total volume of traded shares rose by 12.58%, while the overall value of transactions surged by 32.36%. According to Atlass Portfolios Limited, a total of 486.09 million shares worth ₦11.38 billion changed hands across 24,883 deals.
ACCESSCORP emerged as the top equity by volume, accounting for 9.30% of the day’s trades. It was followed closely by FIDELITYBK (8.12%), GTCO (6.69%), CUTIX (4.96%), and UBA (4.24%). GTCO led the pack in value terms, contributing 19.47% of the total monetary volume traded.
Among the day’s gainers, IKEJAHOTEL and TANTALIZER topped the leaderboard with 10.00% price increases each. They were followed by BETAGLAS (+9.98%), CHAMPION (+9.97%), NNFM (+9.97%), MULTIVERSE (+9.94%), and MCNICHOLS (+9.91%), among others, making up a list of 46 advancing equities.
On the flip side, 23 stocks recorded losses, with TIP taking the largest hit at -10.00%. Other losers included ABCTRANS (-9.83%), FTNCOCOA (-9.65%), SUNUASSUR (-8.05%), TRANSCOHOT (-5.64%), and FIDELITYBK (-3.85%).
Sector-wise, the performance was largely positive. The consumer goods sector led the charge, appreciating by 1.55%, while insurance climbed 0.56%. Oil and gas rose by 0.19%, and industrial stocks advanced by 0.17%. The banking sector, however, recorded a decline of 0.74%.
In summary, the NGX market capitalisation closed the day lower by ₦7.88 billion, a marginal drop of 0.01%, indicating a cautious start to the trading week amid profit-taking trends.
