NGX extends losses to new week amid N2.34trn market selloff

The Nigerian equities market opened the week on a bearish note, extending its recent losing streak as sustained profit-taking in blue-chip stocks outweighed buying interest.

The benchmark NGX All-Share Index (ASI) declined by 1.57% to close at 228,401.92 points, down from the 232,049.02 points recorded in the previous trading session.

This sharp decline wiped N2.34trn off investors’ wealth and moderated the market’s year-to-date (YTD) return to 46.78%.

Widespread selloffs across large- and mid-cap stocks drove the market downturn. Severe losses were recorded by major tickers, including MTNN and UNILEVER, which both hit the maximum daily loss limit of -10.00%.

Other notable decliners included CADBURY (-9.82%), WEMABANK (-7.41%), DANGSUGAR (-4.93%), NGXGROUP (-4.17%), FCMB (-3.52%), TIP (-3.45%), NEM (-3.10%), FIRSTHOLDCO (-2.48%), WAPCO (-2.33%), UCAP (-2.01%), ZENITHBANK (-1.26%), OANDO (-1.24%), UBA (-0.88%), GTCO (-0.70%), ACCESSCORP (-0.22%), and 30 others.

Overall market breadth weakened significantly as 47 decliners outpaced 13 gainers highlighting broad-based selling pressure across key sectors.

While LEARNAFRCA led the day’s decliners, UPDC managed to top the gainers’ chart despite hitting its 52-week low of N3.25 during the session.

In terms of market activity, total volume traded surged by 171.60% to 1.06bn units, valued at N44.57bn across 62,482 deals.

IKEJAHOTEL dominated the day’s trade, leading both volume and value metrics.

The ticker recorded 305.54m units traded (accounting for 28.94% of the day’s total volume) and generated N13.21bn (representing 29.65% of the total value).

ACCESSCORP and STERLINGNG followed in volume, accounting for 27.47% and 3.16% of the total market turnover, respectively, while ACCESSCORP and PRESCO trailed IKEJAHOTEL as the next highest contributors to total traded value.