Economy
Investment in Nigerian Stocks Slows to N49.486bn in One Week
By Dipo Olowookere
Investors applied caution in their exposure to Nigerian stocks last week after evaluating data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Last Tuesday, the NBS, after rebasing their Consumer Price Index (CPI), said inflation for January 2025 was 24.48 per cent compared with the 34.80 per cent recorded in December 2024. Two days last, the central bank retained the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), also known as the interest rate, at 27.50 per cent.
Traders at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited examined the data and decided to cut down their investment in equities, leading to sale of 2.001 billion shares worth N49.486 billion in 70,853 deals compared with the 2.414 billion shares valued at N55.512 billion traded in 80,988 deals in the preceding week.
Business Post reports that financial stocks led the activity chart with 1.199 billion units sold for N26.325 billion in 30,527 deals, contributing 59.91 per cent and 53.20 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Agriculture shares recorded a turnover of 234.002 million units valued at N1.683 billion in 3,191 deals, and consumer goods equities traded 173.829 million units worth N7.150 billion in 8,903 deals.
Access Holdings, Ellah Lakes, and Fidelity Bank accounted for 618.543 million units worth N11.207 billion in 7,159 deals, contributing 30.92 per cent and 22.65 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Abbey Mortgage Bank was the best-performing stock in the week with 16.13 per cent rise to trade at N3.60, Smart Products Nigeria gained 15.38 per cent to quote at 30 Kobo, Dangote Sugar increased by 15.00 per cent to N41.40, BUA Foods grew by 11.91 per cent to N418.00, and Sovereign Trust Insurance soared by 11.86 per cent to N1.32.
On the flip side, Union Dicon lost 25.00 per cent to settle at N6.00, Ikeja Hotel shed 21.43 per cent to N11.00, UDPC declined by 17.99 per cent to N3.10, Academy Press fell by 16.52 per cent to N2.78, and Oando slipped by 15.71 per cent to N59.00.
When the market closed for the week, 28 equities appreciated versus 65 equities of the previous week, 58 stocks depreciated compared with 31 stocks of the preceding week, and 64 shares closed flat, in contrast to the 54 shares recorded a week earlier.
The All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation appreciated last week by 0.41 per cent and 0.29 per cent each to 108,497.40 points and N67.614 trillion, respectively.
In the same vein, all other indices finished higher apart from the NGX CG, NGX Premium,
banking, pension, AFR Bank Value, AFR Div Yield, MERI Growth, MERI Value, energy, growth and commodity indices, which depreciated by 2.09 per cent, 1.15 per cent, 3.22 per cent, 1.22 per cent, 3.25 per cent, 1.79 per cent, 2.39 per cent, 2.78 per cent, 2.87 per cent, 0.25 per cent and 0.50 per cent, respectively.
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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