NSE turnover hits 60% as investors gain N44bn

Chinwendu Obienyi

The volume of transactions on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) increased by 60 per cent at the close of yesterday’s trading due to gains in the shares of FBN Holdings, Access Bank and GT Bank.

Similarly, the All Share Index (ASI) inched higher by 0.13 per cent to close at 26,824.50 points, leading to a slight improvement in YTD loss at -14.7 per cent. Furthermore, market capitalisation improved by N44 billion to settle at N12.946 trillion.

Also, activity level strengthened as both volume and value increased by 60 per cent and 15.9 per cent to settle at 303.82 million units and N1.72 billion respectively, exchanged in 3,151 deals.

The most traded stocks by volume were Law Union (151.7 million units), UBA (20.4 million units) and Access Bank (12.4 million units) while the most traded stocks by value were Nestle (N326.3 million), Dangote Cement(N292.7 million) and Zenith Bank (N193.1 million). Market breadth was positive as 19 stocks appreciated while 13 others depreciated. Cadbury topped the gainers’ chart with 10 per cent to close at N9.90, Cutix followed with 9.72 per cent to close at N1.58, Glaxosmithkline rose by 9.65 per cent to close at N6.25, Union Diagnostics increased by 9.09 per cent to close at 0.24 kobo while UACN garnered 7.14 per cent to close at N7.50 per share.

On the other hand, Cileasing topped the losers’ chart with 9.85 per cent to close at N5.95 per share. Jaiz Bank was next with a decline of 8.70 per cent to close at 0.63 kobo, Livestock feeds dropped 7.27 per cent to close at 0.51 kobo, Afromedia fell by 5.56 per cent to close at 0.34 kobo while Dangote sugar lost 4.83 per cent to close at N13.80. Reacting to the development, Analysts at Afrinvest said, “We expect the underlying bearish sentiment to dominate market performance this week, although we see opportunities for bargain hunting”.