CSCS Drains NASD OTC Market Capitalisation to N636.7bn

By Adedapo Adesanya

The stay of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange in the positive territory was short-lived as a result of the poor performance by Central Securities Clearing Systems (CSCS) Plc.

The Nigerian depository company pulled the unlisted securities market back into the danger zone on Thursday by 1.1 per cent due to profit-taking in the company’s stocks.

The share price of CSCS Plc went down during the session by N1.41 or 7.8 per cent to close at N18.20 per unit compared with the previous closing price of N19.61 per unit.

Consequently, the market capitalisation of the exchange depreciated by N7.05 billion to settle at N636.7 billion compared with N643.75 billion it closed in the preceding session.

Also, the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) declined yesterday by 8.32 points to wrap the session at 751.91 points in contrast to 760.23 points it closed on Wednesday.

A look at the activity table for the session showed that the NASD OTC market recorded a lower trading volume as the number of shares bought and sold stood at 344,666 units compared with the 788,799 units traded at the preceding session, indicating a decline of 56.1 per cent.

The value of shares also dipped on Thursday and it was by 50.5 per cent as securities worth N8.1 million exchanged hands in contrast to the N16.9 million transacted at the midweek session.

In the same vein, the number of deals executed by investors declined by 87.1 per cent to four deals from the 31 deals executed a day earlier.

When the market closed for the day, CSCS Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 654.3 million units worth N13.7 billion, trailed by NASD Plc with 3.5 million units valued at N54.3 million, and Food Concepts Plc with 2.0 million units worth N1.6 million.

Also, CSCS Plc was the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) with the sale of 654.3 million units worth N13.7 billion, followed by VFD Group Plc with 916,161 units worth N331.5 million, and FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc with 2.0 million units valued at N243.0 million.