Selling pressure drags down market indices

 

By Udeme Ekwere   Tuesday, 14 Sep 2010

 

Selling pressure depressed trading activities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Monday, as key indices continued on a downward slide.

Specifically, the NSE‘s All-Share Index fell by 1.14 per cent or 271.24 basis points to close at 23,531.55, down from 23,802.79 recorded last Wednesday.

Similarly, the market capitalisation of the listed equities closed lower at N5.766tn, representing a decease of 1.14 per cent or N67bn, down from N5.832tn.

Market watchers and analysts attributed the decline to the absence of profitable market bargains, despite the seemingly attractive low valuations of most equities.

They traced the developments to the unresolved issues with the banks and some capital market operators.

The banking index fell by 8.49 points or 2.53 per cent, from 344.50 points recorded on the last trading day of the previous week to 336.01, while the NSE Food/Beverage Index slipped by 1.15 per cent or 8.89 points to close at 761.65, down from 770.54 recorded on Wednesday.

A total of 140.177 million banking stocks, valued at N1.085tn were exchanged by investors on 2,718 transactions. Trading in the sub-sector drove total turnover, as it accounted for 69 per cent of total volume.

Trading in the shares of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, Finbank Plc and First City Monument Bank Plc drove volume in the sub-sector.

Construction company stock, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, led the price gainers with a gain of 2.7 per cent or N1.52 to close at N57.50 per share.

Two building materials companies- Lafarge Wapco Plc and Ashaka Cement Plc followed on the chart, rising by 4.2 per cent and 4.9 per cent to close at N36.50 and N24.33 per share, respectively.

On the losers‘ chart, Oando Plc led, shedding five per cent or N2.95 to close at N56.20 per share.

Dangote Flour Plc dropped by five per cent to close at N17.01 per share, while GTBank and Zenith Bank Plc lost 4.5 per cent each, to close at N14.81 and N11.42 per share in that order.

Source: The Punch

 

 

Comments are closed.