Equities buck 6-week gaining streak, shed 0.96% w/w

By Chukwuma Umeorah

Despite gaining on 4 out of 5 trading sessions, the Nigerian Stock market closed the week negative for the first time in seven weeks owing to sell pressure in some high and mid cap stocks on the domestic bourse.

Consequently, the All Share Index fell by 0.96 per cent week-on-week (w/w) to 53,804.46 points while market capitalisation decreased by N290 billion to close the week at N29.310 trillion.

Similarly, all other indices finished lower with the exception of NGX Premium, NGX Insurance, NGX MERI Growth, NGX Consumer Goods, NGX Oil and Gas, NGX Industrial Goods and NGX Growth indices which appreciated by 0.54 per cent, 1.18 per cent, 0.44 per cent, 0.67 per cent, 0.91 per cent, 0.06 per cent and 7.15 per cent respectively while the NGX ASeM and NGX Sovereign Bond indices closed flat.

Investor sentiment, measured by market breadth, improved slightly, as 34 stocks gained, 27 lost while 91 closed flat. TRIPPLEG (+45.3 per cent), LIVINGTRUST (+16.2 per cent), and CHAMS (+16.0 per cent) led the top gainers while CWG (-17.3 per cent), Fidelity Bank (-14.7 per cent) and PHARMDEK (-10.0 per cent) led the decliners.

Reacting to the performance of the market, analysts at Afrinvest Research said, “Given the improvement in investor sentiment, we expect mild gains on Customs street this week”.

For their part, analysts at Cordros Research, noted that investors will be caught between two opposing forces ranging from uncertainties ahead of the nation’s presidential election, and the release of 2022 corporate earnings with accompanying dividend declarations.

“Consequently, we expect more of a choppy theme as cautious trading takes center stage ahead of the 2023 general elections scheduled to hold later in the week. Notwithstanding, we advise investors to take positions in only fundamentally justified stocks as the weak macro story remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings”, they said.

Meanwhile, a total turnover of 751.990 million shares worth N20.575 billion in 15,822 deals was traded by investors on the floor of the exchange, in contrast to a total of 944.293 million shares valued at N22.710 billion that exchanged hands in the previous week in 18,615 deals.

The Financial Services Industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 508.517 million shares valued at N6.212 billion traded in 6,877 deals; thus contributing 67.62 per cent and 30.19 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The Consumer Goods Industry followed with 86.346 million shares worth N4.806 billion in 2,562 deals while the Industrial Goods Industry recorded a turnover of 34.305 million shares worth N3.635 billion in 1,305 deals.