By Adedapo Adesanya
For the third straight day this week, the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange transactions closed flat on Wednesday, February 12, 2020.
As a result of this, the market capitalisation of unlisted securities space in Nigeria remained at N501.73 billion, while the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) stayed at 697.86 points.
However, the volume of shares traded by market participants pointed south by 98.17 percent or 545,394 units as only 10,171 units of securities were transacted during the session in contrast to the 555,565 units transacted on Tuesday.
In the same vein, the value of transactions recorded today depreciated by over N10 million or 83.21 percent as trades valued at N2.1 million were achieved compared with the N12.2 million quoted on Tuesday.
But the number of deals executed at the midweek session remained flat at the close of business as investors carried out six deals during the trading day, the same number of deals recorded yesterday, while the share prices of stocks listed on the exchange also remained static.
ARM Life Plc maintained its position as the most traded security by volume (year to date) with a total transaction of 29 million units valued at N18.3 million, while Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc followed with 4.2 million units worth N49.7 million, with Niger Delta Exploration & Production Plc (NDEP) taking the third spot after trading 3.7 million units worth N1.2 billion.
But in terms of the most traded equity by value (year-to-date) NDEP occupied the top place with 3.7 million units of its stocks sold for N1.2 billion. It was followed by FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc, which has traded 587,887 units worth N73.4 million, and CSCS Plc, which has sold 4.1 million units of its stocks for N49.7 million.
Business Post observed that news on Tuesday that FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc was given the permission to access foreign exchange (forex) from banks to import diary into the country could not lift the unlisted securities market.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) included Friesland, one of the major market movers, as one of the six firms exemption from the forex restriction policy aimed to boost local production.
Modupe Gbadeyanka