N1.88trn Lost as Nigeria's Market Declines on September 8

On September 8, Nigeria's equities market closed sharply lower, with the Nigerian Exchange Limited All-Share Index (ASI) declining by 1.17% to 244,802.11 points. This drop resulted in a loss of N1.88 trillion from investors' wealth, reducing the year-to-date return from 59.18% to 57.31%.

The total market capitalization also fell to N158.72 trillion due to widespread selling pressure across major market segments. The banking sector faced the steepest decline, dropping 5.29% as investors sold shares of several major lenders following strong market gains earlier in the year.

A total of 753.18 million shares worth N27.82 billion changed hands across 54,051 deals, with trading volume increasing by 84.67% from the previous session and transaction value rising by 2.09%. The market breadth indicated significant sell-offs, with only four stocks gaining against 65 decliners.