Nigerian stocks shed N602bn as banking selloff extends market....

The Nigerian equities market extended its losses on Tuesday as sustained profit-taking in heavyweight banking stocks wiped N602 billion off investors’ wealth, dragging the benchmark index lower despite gains in selected oil, healthcare and insurance counters.

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index (ASI) declined by 0.38 per cent to close at 244,802.83 points, while market capitalisation fell by 0.38 per cent to N158.02 trillion, reducing the market’s year-to-date return to 57.32 per cent from 57.91 per cent recorded in the previous session.

The decline was driven largely by sell-offs in First HoldCo, which dropped 2.99 per cent, United Bank for Africa (UBA), down 2.17 per cent, and Nestlé Nigeria, which lost 2.76 per cent. Their losses outweighed gains recorded by Oando, which advanced 3.30 per cent, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals, up 8.43 per cent, and AIICO Insurance, which gained 3.47 per cent.

Trading activity presented a mixed picture. Total trading volume surged 69.11 per cent to 1.56 billion shares, while the value of transactions declined 24.37 per cent to N28.63 billion.

Japaul Gold & Ventures emerged as the most actively traded stock by volume with 904.42 million shares, while MTN Nigeria led the value chart with transactions worth N3.25 billion.

Market breadth remained weak, reflecting widespread bearish sentiment across the market, as only 12 stocks recorded gains compared with 39 decliners, giving a negative market breadth ratio of 0.31x.

Among the gainers, Livestock Feeds appreciated by 9.49 per cent to emerge as the session’s best-performing stock, while Multiverse Mining and Exploration led the losers’ chart after shedding 10 per cent.

Meanwhile, the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange bucked the bearish trend, with the NASD Security Index (NSI) rising 0.89 per cent to 4,563.96 points. Market capitalisation also appreciated by 0.89 per cent to N2.74 trillion, lifting the market’s year-to-date return to 28.79 per cent from 27.66 per cent.

Trading activity on the NASD platform was also mixed, with transaction volume increasing 9.03 per cent to 1.61 million shares, while the value of trades fell 26.99 per cent to N47.63 million across 33 deals.

CSCS Plc recorded the highest gain on the NASD platform with a 6.51 per cent appreciation, while FCMB Group and WAMCO declined 6.00 per cent to emerge as the session’s biggest losers.

Analysts said the continued profit-taking in large-cap banking stocks weighed heavily on investor sentiment, although renewed buying interest in selected oil and gas, insurance and healthcare counters helped moderate the market’s overall decline. They added that investors are likely to remain cautious in the near term as they assess corporate earnings releases and monetary policy expectations.