Nigerian Equity Market Declines 0.35% Amid Profit-Taking

On Tuesday, the Nigerian equity market experienced a decline, with the NGX index dropping by 0.35%, which translates to a loss of 874.00 points, closing at 246,686.66 points. The total market capitalization decreased by ₦479 billion, settling at ₦158.219 trillion.

This negative performance was significantly influenced by losses in major equities, including PZ Cusson Nigeria PLC, Nigerian Exchange Group, FBN Holdings, Wema Bank, and Zenith Bank PLC. The market breadth remained weak, reflecting a dominant bearish sentiment, with 37 stocks declining compared to only 14 gainers.

PZ Cusson Nigeria led the decline, shedding 10% to close at ₦88.20, while Wema Bank and Sovereign Trust Insurance also saw significant drops of 9.09% and 8.16%, respectively. Conversely, International Energy Insurance recorded the highest price gain of 9.86%, closing at ₦5.46.

Overall, trading activity was slow, with total volume declining by 47.9% to 587.64 million units valued at ₦23.06 billion across 63,954 deals.