Kelechukwu Mgboji 
The Nigerian equities market opened the week bearish yesterday, reversing gains from the previous session as the All-Share Index (ASI) dipped by 11 basis points to settle at 98,107.52 points.
This downturn, driven by profit-taking in heavyweights such as WAPCO (-4.7%), OANDO (-3.02%), UBA (-1.18%), and AC – CESSCORP (-2.82%), over – shadowed gains recorded in ZENITHBANK (+0.91%), FBNH (+0.19%), and STANBIC (+4.63%).
Consequently, the Yearto-Date (YTD) return eased to 31.21 per cent, while market capitalisation shed N62.58 billion, closing at N59.47 trillion. Month-to-Date (MTD) returns stood at 0.6 per cent, reflecting the ongoing caution among market participants.
Trading activity mirrored the subdued mood, with the total volume of trades plummeting 58.1 per cent to 436.04 million units, valued at N12.86 billion across 9,489 deals.
FCMB emerged as the most traded stock by volume, exchanging 61.65 million units, while ARADEL led by value with transactions worth N3.53 billion. Sectoral performance painted a mixed picture.
Losses in the Insurance (-1.2%), Industrial Goods (-0.5%), and Banking (-0.1%) indices dragged the broader market, while the Oil & Gas index edged 0.4 per cent higher.
The Consumer Goods index remained flat, highlighting sectoral divergence amid investor caution. Market sentiment was notably pessimistic, as reflected in a negative market breadth of decliners outpacing advancers by 35 to 18.
NSLTECH (-10.0%) and GUINEAINS (-8.9%) leading the laggards, while GOLD – BREW (+10.0%) and NGX – GROUP (+10.0%) posted the day’s most significant gains.
“As market participants weigh short-term profittaking against underlying fundamentals, the domestic bourse may continue to witness cautious trading in the days ahead,” stockbrokers told our correspondent.
