Economy
Investors Lose N261b as Stock Market Yet to Record First Gain in 2019
By Dipo Olowookere
Trading activities on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) closed in the negative territory for the sixth consecutive trading session.
Business Post reports that the local bourse is yet to record its first gain in 2019 as investors, mostly foreign portfolio investors, continue to pull out of the market to observe happenings in the country from the sidelines.
This is because the anxiety created in the country by political gladiators is making some investors to jump out of the bus, while news of the exit of Teleology from 9mobile is also giving some of them something to worry about, especially concerning the repayment of the $1.2 billion syndicated loan the telco collected from the banks trading their shares on NSE few years ago, which plunged it into crisis.
At the close of market on Wednesday, the banking index reacted to this with a decline of 0.28 percent on the back of losses posted mostly by the lenders involved in the loan; GTBank, Access Bank, UBA, First Bank and Diamond Bank.
However, the huge loss of 4.35 percent recorded by the Industrial sector was mainly responsible for the bearish closure of the stock market yesterday.
Also, the Insurance index fell by 3.06 percent, while the Consumer Goods index and the Oil/Gas index appreciated by 0.74 percent and 0.15 percent respectively.
When market activities were wrapped up in the midweek session, the market depreciated by 2.33 percent, dragging the year-to-date loss to 6.66 percent.
Specifically, the All-Share Index (ASI) went down by 699.35 points to settle at 29,336.80 points, while the market capitalisation decreased in value by N261 billion to stay at N10.940 trillion from N11.201 trillion it was the previous day.
Business Post reports further that the stock market registered 19 losers against just 14 gainers at the close of business yesterday.
The heaviest price loser was Dangote Cement, which suffered a loss of N16 to finish for the day at N170 per share.
It was followed by GTBank, which crashed by 70 kobo to finish at N31.30k per share, and Eterna, which went down by 40 kobo to end at N3.95k per share.
Custodian Investment and Access Bank both lost by 35 kobo each to close at N5.60k per share and N5.50k apiece.
Conversely, it was a good day for Unilever Nigeria as its share price rose by N3.25k to settle at N37 per unit.
Julius Berger appreciated by N2.35k to close at N25.85k per share, while Flour Mills grew by 85 kobo to end at N18.85k per share.
Zenith Bank increased its share value by 70 kobo to finish at N21 per share, while Mobil Oil Nigeria garnered 40 kobo to close at N184 per share.
Despite the loss recorded on Wednesday, the market recorded a rise in the volume of shares exchanged by investors, though the value dropped.
The volume of shares traded increased by 8.62 percent from 216.3 million to 234.9 million, while the value went down by 15.88 percent from N2.7 billion to N2.3 billion.
It was observed that investors continued with the offloading of Diamond Bank shares, closing on Wednesday as the most active stock on the exchange with a turnover of 54.7 million units sold for N103.9 million.
It was followed by GTBank, which exchanged 27.7 million units worth N865.7 million, and Zenith Bank, which transacted 25.8 million units of its stock for N526.3 million. FBN Holdings sold 21.5 million shares valued at N152.1 million, while Transcorp traded 15.5 million equities worth N18 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
The absence of a positive trigger left Nigerian stocks 0.38 per cent deeper in the bears’ territory on Friday, as investors embarked on cautious trading.
Two of the five major sectors tracked by Business Post finished in red on the last trading session of this week, with the industrial goods down by 2.44 per cent, and the energy down by 0.26 per cent due to profit-taking.
However, bargain-hunting raised the insurance sector by 1.52 per cent, the banking index increased by 0.79 per cent, and the consumer goods sector expanded by 0.28 per cent.
When the closing gong was struck yesterday, the All-Share Index (ASI) of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited crashed by 741.04 points to 192,826.77 points from 193,567.81 points, and the market capitalisation lost N476 billion to close at N123.763 trillion compared with the previous day’s N124.239 trillion.
According to data from Customs Street, Mecure gave up 9.97 per cent to trade at N75.85, Meyer depreciated by 9.90 per cent to N18.65, DAAR Communications crumbled by 9.83 per cent to N2.11, Champion Breweries staggered by 6.49 per cent to N18.00, and Dangote Cement crashed by 6.09 per cent to N779.00.
Conversely, Sovereign Trust Insurance gained 9.95 per cent to settle at N2.21, RT Briscoe improved by 9.93 per cent to N12.51, NGX Group expanded by 9.78 per cent to N124.00, Ellah Lakes surged by 9.70 per cent to N13.00, and Omatek chalked up 9.70 per cent to sell for N2.60.
A total of 44 shares finished on the gainers’ chart during the session, while 25 shares ended on the losers’ table, representing a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
The activity chart showed that 823.8 million stocks valued at N34.8 billion exchanged hands in 63,759 deals during the session versus the 868.5 million stocks worth N31.5 billion traded in 69,310 deals on Thursday.
This indicated that the value of transactions increased by 10.48 per cent, the volume of trades declined by 5.15 per cent, and the number of deals dipped by 8.01 per cent.
The busiest equity on Friday was Fortis Global Insurance, which sold 146.6 million units for N137.3 million, Zenith Bank transacted 79.4 million units valued at N7.1 billion, Japaul exchanged 57.2 million units worth N225.1 million, Jaiz Bank traded 49.5 million units valued at N589.3 million, and Access Holdings exchanged 44.8 million units worth N1.2 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s economy, measured by gross domestic product (GDP), grew by 4.07 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2025.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced the development in its latest GDP report for Q4 2025 on Friday.
The latest figure represents an improvement over the 3.76 per cent growth recorded in the corresponding period of 2024, signalling sustained recovery across key sectors of the economy. The growth rate was faster than the third quarter’s 3.98 per cent.
The report confirmed that Nigeria’s oil sector grew 6.79 per cent year-on-year and the non-oil part of the economy expanded by 3.99 per cent.
Nigeria’s average daily oil production stood at 1.58 million barrels per day in the final three months of 2025. That was lower than the third quarter’s output of 1.64 million barrels per day but higher than the 1.54 million barrels per day in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Breakdown of the data showed that the agriculture sector grew by 4.00 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025. This marks a significant increase compared to the 2.54 per cent growth recorded in the same quarter of 2024, reflecting improved output and resilience in the sector.
The industry sector also recorded a stronger performance during the period under review. It grew by 3.88 per cent year-on-year, up from 2.49 per cent posted in the fourth quarter of 2024. The improvement suggests enhanced activity in manufacturing, construction, and related industrial sub-sectors.
The services sector maintained its position as a major growth driver, expanding by 4.15 per cent in Q4 2025. However, this was slightly lower than the 4.75 per cent growth recorded in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
Overall, the 4.07 per cent GDP growth in the final quarter of 2025 underscores broad-based expansion across agriculture, industry, and services, despite a marginal moderation in services growth.
The Q4 performance provides further evidence of strengthening economic momentum, with improvements recorded in both agriculture and industry compared to the previous year.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
For the second time, Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc is sponsoring the Paris International Agricultural Show (PIAS) as part of its strategies to fortify its ties with France.
The 2026 PIAS kicked off on February 21 and will end on March 1, with about 607,503 visitors, nearly 4,000 animals, and over 1,000 exhibitors in attendance last year, and this year’s programme has already shown signs of being bigger and better.
The theme for this year’s event is Generations Solution. It is to foster knowledge transfer from younger generations and structure processes through which knowledge can be harnessed to drive technological advancement within the global agricultural sector.
In his address on the inaugural day of the Nigerian Pavilion on February 23, the Managing Director for FMN Agro and Director of Strategic Engagement/Stakeholder Relations, Mr Sadiq Usman, said, “At FMN, our mission is Feeding and Enriching Lives Every Day.
“This is a mandate we have fulfilled through decades of economic shifts, rooted in a culture of deep resilience and constant innovation. We support this pavilion because FMN recognises that the next frontier of global Agribusiness lies in high-level technical exchange.
“We thank the France-Nigeria Business Council (FNBC), the organisers of the PIAS, and our fellow members of the Nigerian Pavilion – Dangote, BUA, Zenith, Access, and our partners at Creativo El Matador and Soilless Farm Lab— we are exceedingly pleased to work to showcase the true face of Nigerian commerce.”
Speaking on the invaluable nature of the relationship between Nigeria and France, and the FMN’s commitment to process and product innovation, Mr John G. Coumantaros, stated, “The France – Nigeria relationship is a valuable partnership built on a shared value agenda that fosters remarkable Intercontinental trade growth.
“Also, as an organisation with over six decades of transformational footprint in Nigeria and progressively across the African Continent, FMN has been unwaveringly committed to product and process innovation.
“Therefore, our continuous partnership with France for the success of the Paris International Agricultural Show further buttresses the thriving relationship between both countries.”
PIAS is one of the most widely attended agricultural shows, with thousands of people from across the world in attendance.
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