Stock Market Gains N4bn to Open Week Bullish

By Dipo Olowookere

The first trading session of the new week was positive following the 0.03 per cent appreciation recorded by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

The sustained bargain hunting by investors extended the bullish run at the market, increasing the All-Share Index (ASI) 7.25 points to 25,229.12 points from 25,221.87 points. It equally expanded the market capitalisation by N4 billion during the session to N13.162 trillion from the previous N13.158 trillion.

Business Post reports that the market breadth was at equilibrium yesterday with 15 price gainers and losers each.

Unilever Nigeria was the highest price gainer during the session after adding N1.05 to its share price to finish at N15 per share and was followed by Guinness Nigeria, which appreciated by 20 kobo to close at N15.40 per share.

PZ Cussons gained 15 kobo to settle at N4 per unit, International Breweries grew by 15 kobo to close at N3.75 per share, while University Press rose by 12 kobo to sell for N1.36 each.

On the flip side, Presco closed as the biggest price loser on Monday after shedding N2 to finish at N49 per share and was trailed by Lafarge Africa, which lost 20 kobo to close at N11.50 per unit.

United Capital depreciated by 11 kobo to quote at N3.10 per share, UBA lost 10 kobo to settle at N6.50 per unit, while NASCON declined by 10 kobo to trade at N10 per share.

The insurance and consumer goods sectors helped the market to maintain its positive vibe yesterday by 0.82 per cent and 0.70 per cent respectively, while the industrial goods and banking sectors dropped 0.10 per cent and 0.01 per cent apiece, with the energy sector closing flat.

The level of activity was positive yesterday with a 58.36 per cent rise in the trading volume, 34.56 per cent increase in the trading value and 17.00 per cent growth in the number of deals executed by market participants.

A total of 251.2 million stocks worth N2.4 billion exchanged hands in 3,737 deals on Monday compared with the 158.6 million shares worth N1.8 billion transacted in 3,194 deals last Friday.

A breakdown showed that Transcorp accounted for 75.1 million units worth N42.2 million, Zenith Bank contributed 45.5 million units valued at N767.6 million, GTBank contributed 12.9 million units worth N325.2 million, FBN Holdings accounted for 12.0 million units valued at N60.1 million, while Presco contributed 11.6 million units worth N566.2 million.