By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a bad day on the floor of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange on Thursday as the gains recorded at the preceding session were erased by selling pressure.
The woes of the NASD investors were compounded by Niger Delta Exploration and Production (NDEP) Plc, which dragged the bourse down by 0.09 per cent at the close of transactions.
The oil and gas investment firm lost N3.38 or 1.9 per cent yesterday to settle at N177.00 per share in contrast to N180.38 per share it finished on Wednesday.
However, the unlisted securities market had a price gainer, Afriland Properties Plc, but the growth was not enough to sustain the positive momentum witnessed at the midweek session. The share price of the company increased during the day by 5 kobo or 4.4 per cent to N1.13 per unit from N1.08 per unit.
At the close of business, the market capitalisation of the exchange depreciated by N550 million to N586.42 billion from N586.97 billion, while the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) decreased by 0.66 points to 710.15 points from the 710.81 points recorded at the previous session.
During the session, there was a drop in the volume of securities by 99.8 per cent to 4.0 million units from the 22.0 million units traded at the preceding session, while the value of shares slid by 99.7 per cent to N4.2 million from N1.2 billion, with the number of deals rising by 50 per cent to six deals from four deals.
AG Mortgage Plc maintained its spot as the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 2.3 billion units valued at N1.2 billion, followed by Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 658.8 million units worth N13.8 billion, and NASD Plc with 36.4 units valued at N371.4 million.
However, the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) was CSCS Plc for transacting 658.8 million units for N13.8 billion, trailed by AG Mortgage Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N1.2 billion, and NASD Plc with 36.4 million units traded for N371.4 million.
Modupe Gbadeyanka