Investors on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) experienced a significant drop in market activity this week, with a staggering N370 billion loss in the value of shares traded. The stock market recorded a total turnover of 1.183 billion shares valued at N28.868 billion, executed in 42,397 transactions. This represents a sharp contrast to the previous week’s performance, which saw 7.521 billion shares worth N398.949 billion exchanged in 61,312 deals.
The drastic decline in trading activity, which saw a drop of 1,282 percent in the value of transactions, came amidst a shortened trading week. The Nigerian Federal Government had declared Monday and Tuesday as public holidays to mark the 2025 Eid al-Fitr celebrations, resulting in only three trading days for the week.
The top three equities that dominated trading activity were Fidelity Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, and Universal Insurance Plc, accounting for a combined 264.627 million shares valued at N5.932 billion. These three companies contributed 22.36 percent of the total volume and 20.55 percent of the total value of equities traded. The financial services sector led the trading activity with 906.590 million shares worth N18.926 billion, comprising 76.60 percent of the total volume and 65.56 percent of the total value. Following the financial sector were the consumer goods industry, with 71.059 million shares valued at N2.224 billion, and the services industry, which traded 47.305 million shares worth N396.897 million.
In terms of broader market performance, the NGX All-Share Index saw a modest decline of 0.14 percent, closing the week at 105,511.89, while the market capitalization fell by 0.17 percent to N66.147 trillion. Although the overall market indices closed lower, several sub-indices experienced gains. Notable among them were the NGX CG, NGX Banking, NGX Pension, NGX AseM, NGX AFR Bank Value, NGX MERI Value, NGX Sovereign Bond, and NGX Pension Broad Indices, all of which appreciated by varying percentages, with the NGX AFR Bank Value Index seeing the highest increase of 1.02 percent. The NGX Commodity Index remained unchanged during the week.
The number of equities that appreciated in value during the week was 23, a decrease from the 43 recorded in the previous week. On the other hand, 51 equities recorded losses, compared to 36 in the prior week, while 73 stocks remained unchanged, a slight increase from the 71 that closed unchanged in the previous week.
Among the top decliners were UAC of Nigeria, which lost N6.50, Sunu Assurance (down by 89k), Universal Insurance (declining by 8k), Oando (falling by N6.35), and Consolidated Hallmark Holdings (which lost 46k). On the other hand, the biggest gainers of the week were VFD Group, which rose by 20.76 percent, Union Dicon Salt (up by 19.59 percent), Africa Prudential (which appreciated by 15.71 percent), Nigerian Exchange Group (up by 11.90 percent), and UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust, which gained 10.91 percent. These companies saw a rise in their stock prices, with VFD Group gaining N9.80, Union Dicon Salt adding 95k, Africa Prudential increasing by N2.05, Nigerian Exchange Group gaining N3.45, and UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust rising by 60k.
