Economy
Cautious Trading Sways Nigeria’s Stock Market Southwards
By Dipo Olowookere
Nigeria’s stock market swayed southwards on Tuesday following mild profit-taking and cautious trading by investors, who were waiting for the outcome of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The apex bank had commenced the important gathering, the fourth this year, on Monday and the Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, was expected to announce the decision of the team.
Some analysts had predicted that the benchmark interest rate would be retained at 11.5 per cent, while others projected that it would be tampered with, especially because of the decline in inflation rate in June for the third consecutive month.
Investors knew that the outcome of the meeting would not be out before the closure of the market for the day and to play safe, they had to monitor the equity market from the sidelines. This gave room for some of them to book profit from the gains of the previous trading sessions.
This depleted the market yesterday by 0.12 per cent. Business Post reports that it was the first loss the local bourse was recording in six trading sessions.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) reduced by 46.93 points to settle at 38,802.15 points versus the previous 38,849.08 points.
In the same vein, the market capitalisation decreased at the close of transactions by N24 billion to finish at N20.217 trillion compared with N20.241 trillion it ended on Monday.
It was observed that during the session, investors reduced their level of activity, causing the trading volume to go down by 1.41 per cent to 243.1 million units from 246.6 million units.
Also, the trading value shrank by 15.32 per cent to N1.9 billion from N2.2 billion, while the number of deals decreased by 7.49 per cent to 4,326 deals from 4,676 deals.
When the trading session was ended, Access Bank was the most traded stock with the sale of 21.8 million shares valued at N204.4 million and was trailed by Wema Bank, which sold 21.3 million stocks worth N17.9 million.
UPDC transacted 14.6 million equities worth N18.3 million, UAC Nigeria traded 14.4 million shares valued at N162.2 million, while UBA transacted 12.6 million shares worth N99.1 million.
On the price movement chart, UPDC REIT was the worst price loser as its value went down by 6.67 per cent to settle at N5.60, while Unity Bank lost 6.45 per cent to trade at 58 kobo.
NPF Microfinance Bank depreciated by 5.29 per cent to trade at N1.61, UPDC dropped 5.19 per cent to sell for N1.28, while Chams decreased by 4.76 per cent to 20 kobo.
At the other end, Oando maintained its recent upward trajectory with a price appreciation of 9.86 per cent to close at N4.79 and was trailed by Champion Breweries, which gained 9.00 per cent to sell at N2.30.
FTN Cocoa grew by 8.89 per cent to settle at 49 kobo, Fidson appreciated by 6.73 per cent to close at N6.50, while Livestock Feeds improved by 6.02 per cent to N2.29.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The federal government has been asked by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to suspend the implementation of the controversial tax laws.
In a reaction to the tax reform acts, the president of the group, Mr Afam Osigwe (SAN), the suspension of the laws would allow for a proper investigation into allegations of alterations in the gazetted and harmonised copies.
A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Abdussamad Dasuki, alleged that some parts of the laws passed by the parliament were different from the gazetted copy.
To address the issues raised, the NBA said it is “imperative that a comprehensive, open, and transparent investigation be conducted to clarify the circumstances surrounding the enactment of the laws and to restore public confidence in the legislative process.”
“Until these issues are fully examined and resolved, all plans for the implementation of the Tax Reform Acts should be immediately suspended,” the association declared.
It noted that the controversies “raise grave concerns about the integrity, transparency, and credibility of Nigeria’s legislative process.”
“These developments strike at the very heart of constitutional governance and call into question the procedural sanctity that must attend lawmaking in a democratic society,” it noted.
“Legal and policy uncertainty of this magnitude has far-reaching consequences. It unsettles the business environment, erodes investor confidence, and creates unpredictability for individuals, businesses, and institutions required to comply with the law. Such uncertainty is inimical to economic stability and should have no place in a system governed by the rule of law.
“Nigeria’s constitutional democracy demands that laws, especially those with profound economic and social implications, emerge from processes that are transparent, accountable, and beyond reproach. Anything short of this undermines public trust and weakens the foundation upon which lawful governance rests.
“We therefore call on all relevant authorities to act swiftly and responsibly in addressing this controversy, in the overriding interest of constitutional order, economic stability, and the preservation of the rule of law,” the organisation stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Demand for hot stocks, including MRS Oil Plc, buoyed the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.52 per cent on Tuesday, December 23.
The energy company was one of the three price gainers for the session as it chalked up N19.69 to sell at N216.59 per share versus the previous day’s value of N196.90 per share.
Further, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained N2.95 to close at N56.75 per unit versus N53.80 per unit and Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 84 Kobo to N9.29 per share from Monday’s N8.45 per share.
Consequently, the market capitalisation went up by N10.95 billion to N2.125 trillion from N2.125 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) rose by 18.31 points to 3,570.37 points from 3,552.06 points.
Yesterday, the NASD bourse recorded a price loser, the Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS), which gave up 17 Kobo to close at N33.70 per unit against the previous trading value of N33.87 per unit.
The volume of securities traded at the session went down by 97.6 per cent to 297,902 units from the previous day’s 12.6 million units, the value of securities decreased by 98.5 per cent to N10.5 million from N713.6 million, and the number of deals remained flat at 32 deals.
By value, Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc ended as the most actively traded stock on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units exchanged for N16.4 billion. This was followed by Okitipupa Plc, which traded 178.9 million units valued at N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
In terms of volume, also on a year-to-date basis, InfraCredit Plc led the chart with a turnover of 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion. Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc ranked second with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, while Impresit Bakolori Plc followed with the sale of 536.9 million units valued at N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
It was another bullish trading session for the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited as it closed higher by 0.59 per cent on Tuesday.
The market further rallied due to continued interest in large and mid-cap stocks on the exchange by investors rebalancing their portfolios for the year-end.
Yesterday, Aluminium Extrusion sustained its upward trajectory after it further appreciated by 9.96 per cent to N14.90, as Austin Laz gained 9.81 per cent to close at N2.91, Custodian Investment improved by 9.69 per cent to N38.50, and First Holdco soared by 9.35 per cent to N50.30.
Conversely, Royal Exchange declined by 7.22 per cent to N1.80, Champion Breweries shrank by 6.57 per cent to N15.65, NASCON lost 5.36 per cent to trade at N105.05, Sovereign Trust Insurance depreciated by 5.28 per cent to N3.77, and Japaul went down by 4.51 per cent to N2.33.
At the close of business, 29 shares ended on the gainers’ table and 27 shares finished on the losers’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
This raised the All-Share Index (ASI) by 895.06 points to 153,354.13 points from 152,459.07 points and lifted the market capitalisation by N579 billion to N97.772 trillion from the previous day’s N97.193 trillion.
VFD Group finished the day as the busiest stock after it recorded a turnover of 192.0 million units worth N2.1 billion, GTCO exchanged 63.5 million units valued at N5.6 billion, Access Holdings traded 49.8 million units for N1.0 billion, First Holdco sold 45.8 million units valued at N2.3 billion, and Secure Electronic Technology transacted 38.3 million units worth N28.4 million.
In all, market participants bought and sold 677.4 million units valued at N20.8 billion in 27,589 deals compared with the 451.5 million units worth N13.0 billion traded in 33,327 deals on Monday, showing an improvement in the trading volume and value by 50.03 per cent and 60.00 per cent apiece, and a shortfall in the number of deals by 17.22 per cent.
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