- The Nigerian Exchange rose 0.74% as insurance, consumer goods, and industrial sectors led gains.
- Thirty-one stocks advanced while 24 declined, reflecting positive market breadth and bullish investor sentiment.
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited rebounded into the green zone on Thursday, closing higher by 0.74 per cent. This upward movement was driven by gains in three of the six key sectors of the local stock market, even as the banking and energy indices declined by 0.35% and 0.03%, respectively, while the commodity sector closed flat.
According to Business Post, the insurance sector expanded by 2.99 per cent, the consumer goods index appreciated by 1.15 per cent, and the industrial goods counter recorded a marginal growth of 0.01 per cent. Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 1,088.58 points to 147,950.59 points, up from 146,862.01 points, and market capitalisation increased by N694 billion to N94.319 trillion from N93.625 trillion.
During the trading session, 31 stocks finished on the advancers’ chart, whereas 24 stocks ended on the laggards’ log, reflecting a positive market breadth index and strong bullish sentiment among investors. Leading the gainers, Japaul climbed 9.88 per cent to close at N2.78, while Berger Paints also rose by 9.88 per cent to N40.05. Morison increased by 9.77 per cent to N4.27, PZ Cussons advanced 9.36 per cent to N45.00, and Legend Internet surged by 8.91 per cent to N5.50.
Conversely, John Holt lost 9.26 per cent to trade at N4.90, Champion Breweries fell 7.86 per cent to N12.90, Eterna dipped 5.48 per cent to N30.20, VFD Group shed 5.07 per cent to N10.30, and The Initiates contracted 4.80 per cent to N11.90.
Trading volume, value, and the number of deals all declined compared to the previous session. Investors exchanged 529.7 million equities worth N12.3 billion across 18,159 deals, representing reductions of 29.10 per cent, 0.81 per cent, and 5.23 per cent, respectively, from Wednesday’s 747.1 million equities valued at N12.4 billion in 19,161 transactions.
Access Holdings led the activity chart with a turnover of 156.3 million units valued at N3.2 billion. FCMB followed, exchanging 74.5 million units worth N819.5 million, while Fidelity Bank sold 42.9 million units for N812.7 million. Japaul traded 41.2 million units valued at N106.0 million, and Zenith Bank recorded 20.3 million units worth N1.3 billion.