The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) closed the week on a bearish note as the All-Share Index (ASI) dipped by 0.50%, pressured by sustained selloffs in Tier-1 banking stocks. Analysts attribute the decline to investor concerns stemming from delayed corporate earnings, which have weakened sentiment across the market.
The equities market has now recorded three consecutive weeks of losses as the initial excitement around half-year earnings reports and interim dividend declarations continues to fade. This has prompted investors to rotate their portfolios across sectoral indices in search of stability.
Major selloffs in Zenith Bank (-5.70%), GTCO (-2.13%), WAPCO (-3.38%), and Aradel Holdings (-1.73%) dragged the index lower, offsetting notable gains in Geregu (+11.11%), Nigerian Breweries (+3.24%), and Stanbic IBTC (+6.38%).
By the close of trading, the benchmark index stood at 140,295.49 points, down from the previous week’s 141,004.14 points, while market capitalization dropped by ₦439 billion to ₦88.77 trillion. Year-to-date returns eased to 36.31%.
Market breadth remained weak, with only 31 gainers against 57 losers, giving a ratio of 0.54x. Trading activity also slowed as total deals fell by 6.54% to 142,654, while volume and value dropped by 41.03% and 21.21% respectively, closing at 3.20 billion units valued at ₦85.47 billion.
Sectoral performance was broadly negative:
- Banking Index: -1.21%
- Insurance Index: -1.02%
- Consumer Goods Index: -0.89%
- Industrial Goods Index: -0.36%
- Commodities Index: -0.30%
- Oil & Gas Index: -0.18%
According to Cowry Asset Management, the equities market is likely to trade in a mixed pattern in the coming week, with cautious sentiment dominating due to tight liquidity and persistent macroeconomic concerns.
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