Investors Hit Hard by Market Downturn: NGX Reports N145 Billion Loss
Investors in the Nigerian equities market were dealt a heavy blow as they found themselves losing a significant N145 billion at the close of trading on Friday. This drastic turn of events comes in the wake of the last trading day before the upcoming Christmas celebration in the country.
The considerable loss is attributed to the crash in the market capitalization, which plummeted to N40.507 trillion from the N40.652 trillion recorded by the bourse the day before. In a similar vein, the All-Share Index (ASI) nosedived by 0.36% or 265.7 basis points, closing at 74,023.27, down from the previous 74,289.02 on Thursday.
Despite the downturn, the market breadth painted a positive picture with 32 stocks making gains, 19 experiencing declines, and several others remaining unchanged within 6,333 deals.
Emerging as the top gainers were Multiverse Mining and Exploration and Transcorp Hotel, each boasting a 10% surge to close at N13.97 and N63.80 from their former prices of N12.70 and N58.00 per share. Other notable gainers include Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank, United Capital, and Abbey, with an impressive 9.95%, 9.79%, and 9.52% growth in their share prices.
On the other end of the spectrum, Consolidated Hallmark Holding took the lead among price decliners as its share price plummeted by 8.73% to close at N1.15 from the previous N1.26 per share. Other significant losers of the day were International Breweries, Prestige Assurance, and ABC Transport, which experienced an 8.33%, 7.84%, and 7.32% dip in share prices, respectively.
In terms of trading volume, Universal Insurance emerged at the forefront, with 41.994 million shares valued at N10.9 million traded in 43 deals. Transcorp followed closely, trading 41.933 million shares worth N383.07 million in 544 deals. Completing the top three in this category was Mutual Benefit Assurance, which traded 30.198 million shares valued at N14.9 million in 25 deals.
In the value index, Geregu led the pack, trading stocks worth N6.622 billion in 232 deals, trailed by Seplat, which recorded N2.769 billion in 36 deals. Zenith Bank wrapped up the top three, trading N1 billion worth of stocks in 354 deals.
The NGX trading results underscore the volatility of the Nigerian equities market, reflecting the vulnerability of investors to sudden downturns. The considerable decline in market value on the cusp of the festive season does not bode well for the investment climate of the country.
In conclusion, the recent market downturn serves as a stark reminder for investors to carefully navigate the equities market, especially during times of volatility. The impact of these fluctuations is keenly felt by investors and underscores the importance of diversifying their investment portfolios in order to mitigate risks associated with market downturns.
