The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) gained approximately N779 billion in market value on Thursday as the All-Share Index advanced 0.47% despite heavy selling pressure in some stocks.
Equities market capitalisation increased from N164.194 trillion on Wednesday to N164.974 trillion on Thursday, representing an increase of approximately N779.31 billion.
The NGX All-Share Index also gained 1,200.24 points from 252,882.78 points to 254,083.02 points.
Trading activity strengthened significantly with investors exchanging 654.28 million shares valued at N57.36 billion across 35,821 deals.
This compared with 404.11 million shares worth N27.91 billion traded across 39,012 deals in the previous session.
Accordingly, trading volume increased by approximately 61.9%, while transaction value more than doubled with an increase of about 105.5%. The number of deals, however, declined by about 8.2%.
First HoldCo dominated trading activity with 343.80 million shares valued at N34.78 billion, accounting for approximately 52.5% of total market volume and 60.6% of transaction value.
The stock declined by another 10% from N139.50 to N125.55, extending its decline for a second consecutive trading session.
GTCO followed on the activity chart with 40.57 million shares valued at N4.91 billion, while UBA recorded 26.38 million shares worth N1.13 billion.
Regency Alliance Insurance traded 20.51 million shares valued at N12.99 million, while Access Holdings recorded 14.09 million shares worth N404.39 million.
On the gainers’ chart, E-Tranzact International led equities with a 10% increase from N16 to N17.60.
Sovereign Trust Insurance advanced 9.60% from N1.98 to N2.17, while FTG Insurance appreciated 9.37% from N1.60 to N1.75.
McNichols gained 9.18% to close at N5.35, while Zichis rose 8.24% from N17 to N18.40.
On the other side of the market, First HoldCo led the equity decliners with its 10% drop to N125.55.
Livestock Feeds declined 9.70% from N13.40 to N12.10, Tantalizer dropped 8.40% to N3.60, while C&I Leasing fell 7.41% from N5.40 to N5.
Despite the sharp losses recorded by some equities, gains elsewhere were sufficient to lift the benchmark index and add approximately N779 billion to the value of listed equities.
