By Dipo Olowookere
A total of 2.872 billion shares worth N132.811 billion exchanged hands in 39,867 deals at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last week versus the 3.318 billion shares valued at N45.911 billion traded in 49,243 deals in the preceding week.
The decline in the trading volume may be attributed to the closure of the bourse last Tuesday for the October 1 public holiday declared by the federal government to commemorate the Independence Day anniversary and a loss of appetite for local equities by investors.
Business Post reports that in the four-day trading week, the All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation depreciated by 0.95 per cent to 97,520.54 points and N56.039 trillion, respectively.
In the same vein, all other indices finished lower apart from the corporate governance, pension, insurance, NGX AFR Bank Value, NGX MERI Growth, NGX MERI Value, consumer goods, energy, and growth indices, which gained 1.21 per cent, 0.61 per cent, 3.81 per cent, 2.69 per cent, 0.23 per cent, 10.87 per cent, 0.34 per cent, 7.29 per cent and 5.43 per cent, respectively, while the ASeM and sovereign bond indices closed flat.
In the week, consumer goods shares led the activity chart with 1.341 billion units valued at N106.099 billion traded in 4,652 deals, contributing 46.68 per cent and 79.89 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Further, financial stocks recorded the sale of 926.615 million units worth N14.924 billion in 19,174 deals, and energy equities traded 244.638 million units for N7.221 billion in 4,221 deals.
Guinness Nigeria, UBA and Japaul accounted for 1.708 billion shares worth N110.766 billion in 5,004 deals, contributing 59.47 per cent and 83.40 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Last week, 45 stocks finished on the gainers’ log like the preceding week, and 33 shares ended on the losers’ table as the previous week, while 73 equities closed flat, the same as a week earlier.
Deap Capital gained 31.53 per cent to trade at N1.46, Seplat appreciated by 21.00 per cent to N4,964.70, Tripple Gee rose by 20.34 per cent to N4.97, Veritas Kapital grew by 20.00 per cent to N1.68, and Regency Assurance leapt by 18.84 per cent to 82 Kobo.
On the other side of the divide, McNichols depreciated by 15.63 per cent to N1.35, Fidelity Bank lost 13.33 per cent to trade at N13.00, Dangote Sugar shed 12.20 per cent to N30.60, FBN Holdings slumped by 11.19 per cent to N25.00, and Dangote Cement retreated by 10.00 per cent to N478.80.
Modupe Gbadeyanka