Investors in NGX Lose N673 Billion Due to Naira Depreciation

Experiencing a downturn, investors at the Nigerian exchange market saw a decline on Wednesday, resulting in a loss of N673 billion in market capitalisation. The drop was attributed to sell-offs in major stocks like MTN Nigeria and Transcorp Hotel, which occurred amid the depreciation of the Naira against the Dollar in the foreign exchange market.

The market capitalisation fell by 1.20%, equivalent to N673 billion, closing at N55.494 trillion compared to N56.167 trillion the previous day.

Similarly, the All-share Index recorded a 1.20% loss, dropping by 1,190 points to settle at 98,121.30, down from 99,311.54 in the previous session.

This led to a Year-To-Date (YTD) return decline to 31.22%.

Other declining equities, including FBN Holdings, Cornerstone Insurance, and Mutual Benefits Assurance, also contributed to the negative market performance.

Despite this, the market breadth ended positively, with 22 advancing stocks outnumbering the 19 that declined.

Among the gainers were Sunu Assurances, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals, and The Initiative Plc(TIP), each gaining 10% to close at N1.21, N1.98, and N1.98 per share, respectively.

Following closely, Cap Plc surged by 9.90% to close at N28.85, while UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust rose by 9.76% to close at N1.35 per share.

On the flip side, Transcorp Hotel and MTN led the losers with a 10% decline each, closing at N87.93 and N201.60 per share, respectively.

Oando followed with a 9.90% drop to close at N9.10, FBN Holdings lost 9.82% ending at N19.75, and FIDSON Healthcare Plc saw a decline of 9.82% to finish at N19.75 per share.

An analysis of market activities indicated that trade turnover settled higher compared to the previous session, with the value of transactions increasing by 22.10%.

A total of 395.75 million shares valued at N9.58 billion were exchanged in 7,907 deals, as opposed to the previous session which saw 574.43 million shares traded at a value of N7.84 billion in 7,324 deals.

Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) led in both volume and value, trading 81.41 million shares worth 2.93 billion. Zenith Bank followed with 46.16 billion shares valued at N1.69 billion.

United Bank of Africa (UBA) transacted 41.60 million shares worth N953.52 million, FBN Holdings traded 23.44 million shares valued at N480.99 million, and Access Corporation had 22.30 million shares worth N361.89 million.

It’s worth noting that on Tuesday, the equity market recorded a loss of N200 billion.