The Nigerian equities market closed on a negative note, with the benchmark index declining by 10 basis points, bringing the year-to-date return to 62.10%.
Market activity weakened, as trading volume declined by 42.07% to 1.03 billion shares, while total value traded fell by 58.41% to ₦41.69 billion.
Despite the market’s weak performance, market breadth remained firmly positive, with 44 gainers against 34 decliners, reflecting resilient bullish sentiment across several counters.
On the sectoral front, the banking sector dominated trading activity for the third consecutive session this week, recording the highest volume and value of trades. Meanwhile, the insurance sector emerged as the top-performing sector, posting a strong daily gain of 0.46%. Although the oil and gas sector closed lower today, it continued to maintain the strongest year-to-date performance, delivering an impressive return of 125.24%.
On the performance chart, LEARNAFRCA and FIDSON led the gainers’ table, while ZICHIS topped the laggards’ list, followed by FTNCOCOA.
On the corporate front, several companies announced upcoming Annual General Meetings (AGMs).
Currency Market
Today, the naira depreciated against the dollar at the NAFEM window, with the USD/NGN pair advancing by 30 basis points to close at ₦1,375.00.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s external reserves have continued to trend higher this week, edging up further to $48.51 billion, supported by increased offshore portfolio participation in the domestic market.
In the commodities market, Brent crude oil prices declined marginally by 0.9% to settle at $104.85 per barrel, as concerns over weakening global oil demand and slower economic activity outweighed persistent supply-side disruptions in the Middle East
