Equity Market Soars, Investors Gain N1.45bn As Week Ends Strong

The domestic bourse ended the week on a positive note on Friday, with 844.49 million shares valued at N15.04 billion exchanged in 15,255 deals.

As a result, the All-Share Index rose by 2.88%, or 2651.2 points, to close at 94,538.12, compared to 91,896.97 on Thursday. Similarly, market capitalization, which opened at N50.289 trillion, closed at N51.735 trillion, gaining N1.45 billion, or 2.88%, for investors. Consequently, the Year-to-Date (YTD) return climbed to 26.43%.

Sustained buying interests in the shares of key sectors like Dangote Cement, BUA Cement, MTN Nigeria, and tier-one banks maintained the market in a positive trajectory throughout the week.

Transcorp led the activity chart in volume, trading 80.32 million units valued at N151.95 million, followed by Veritas Kapital with 80.07 million units valued at N59.63 million. Fidelity Bank traded 60.54 million units valued at N785.11 million, while Jaiz Bank and UBA traded 36.32 million units valued at N131.77 million and 34.85 million units valued at N1.08 billion, respectively.

On the gainers’ table, BUA Cement and Seplat Energy led in percentage terms, both rising 10%. BUA Cement closed at N148.50, and Seplat Energy closed at N2541 per share. May and Baker Nigeria followed with a 9.99% increase to close at N8.26. Dangote Cement and Honeywell Flour Mills appreciated by 9.98% and 9.96%, respectively, to close at N538.80 and N5.85 per share.

Conversely, LASACO Assurance led the losers’ table with a 9.85% decline to close at N2.47, followed by C&I Leasing with a 9.82% drop to close at N3.95 per share. Mutual Benefits Assurance, NAHCO, and PZ Cussons also declined by 9.41%, 9.38%, and 9.31%, respectively, to close at 77k, N33.80, and N35.55 per share.

However, the market breadth closed negative, with 35 declining issues outnumbering 33 advancing ones.

An analysis of the market activities showed that trade turnover settled lower compared to the previous session, with the value of transactions down by 32.67%.

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