Bearish Trend Deepens as Nigerian Stock Market Sheds N81 Billion

|By Babatunji Wusu-

-Market Dips as NGX Investors Lose N81 Billion in a Day
–Sell-offs in Big Stocks Push All-Share Index, Capitalisation Lower

The Nigerian stock market extended its bearish run on Wednesday, with investors losing a total of ₦81 billion as key market indicators closed in the red.

Market capitalisation fell by 0.12%, dropping to ₦66.496 trillion from ₦66.577 trillion recorded on Tuesday, as the All-Share Index also declined by 130.33 points, settling at 105,800.85.

Analysts linked the downward slide to massive sell-offs in large-cap stocks, which dragged the overall market performance.

Despite the dip, market breadth ended positive, with 39 gainers against 25 losers, indicating that some mid and low-cap stocks enjoyed increased investor appetite.

On the gainers’ chart, University Press led the pack with a 10% surge, closing at ₦3.74, while Vitafoam Nigeria Plc also gained 10% to end trading at ₦52.80 per share.
Livestock Feeds jumped by 9.97% to settle at ₦8.49, followed by C & I Leasing Plc, which appreciated by 9.89% to ₦4.00.
McNichols Plc rose by 9.88%, ending the day at ₦1.89 per share.

Conversely, the losers’ table was led by Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, which plummeted by 10% to ₦28.80.
International Breweries also shed 10%, closing at ₦7.38, while Ikeja Hotel Plc dipped by 9.89% to ₦12.30.
Cadbury Nigeria followed with a 9.80% loss, settling at ₦29.00, and Austin Laz & Company Plc dropped by 9.52%, ending the session at ₦1.71.

The trading volume also declined significantly. A total of 392.99 million shares worth ₦12.755 billion were exchanged in 17,519 transactions, compared to 733.05 million shares worth ₦35.288 billion traded in 16,619 deals the previous session.

United Bank for Africa (UBA) topped the activity chart with 38.86 million shares valued at ₦1.36 billion. It was followed by Wema Bank with 26.62 million shares worth ₦400 million, and Fidelity Bank, which traded 25.39 million shares valued at ₦525.05 million.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) reported a ₦2.1 billion profit for the first quarter of 2025, signalling underlying business strength despite the volatile market.