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Following the
recent extension of trading period at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE)
to improve market activities, analysis showed that some sectors of the
NSE have improved significantly in their performances.

A market assessment
carried out by finance experts at Proshare Nigeria Limited, an
investment advisory firm, on Thursday, revealed that five sectors of
quoted equities at the Exchange witnessed growth in value.

The figures traded
in the following sectors, when compared with the average figures
recorded before extended trading hours, showed that the Foreign
Listings sector had 2,799 percent value growth; Engineering Technology
sector, 1,150 percent; Breweries, 935 percent; Food/Beverages, 541.51
percent; and Mortgage, 327 percent value growth.

The Interim
Administrator of the NSE, Emmanuel Ikazoboh, had on Monday, when the
new trading period started, said the extension “was one of the
strategic moves by the leadership of the NSE to reposition the market
for enhanced competitiveness, which would give foreign investors,
especially those in the United States of America, opportunity to
participate in the Nigerian market.”

Decline continues

Meanwhile, the
decline in equities’ market capitalisation at the Exchange continued on
Thursday as about N26 billion was lost, reflecting 0.32 percent
downturn. It had on Wednesday gained over N14 billion.

The market
capitalisation closed yesterday’s transaction at N7.859 trillion from
Wednesday’s figure of N7.885 trillion. The NSE All-Share Index also
shed 79.89 units or 0.32 percent, down from 24,681.17 basis points to
close at 24,601.28.

Ecobank
Transnational Incorporation, the only traded stock in the Foreign
Listings sector, ranked as the most traded stock on Thursday with
29.511 million units, followed by Dangote Sugar, Guaranty Trust Bank,
and Aso Savings and Loans.

The research team
at Access Bank said the recent wobbly performance been witnessed in the
stock market “can be partly attributed to decline in investors’
optimism about a recovery, as well as poor financial results of some
blue chip companies.” They said that the capital market can still
exhibit a “coiled market” tendency, with the current low equity prices
capable of pushing the index to a higher level.

“We are cautiously
optimistic that the recent drop in share prices to relatively low
levels may stimulate another round of purchase of stocks and then cause
the All-Share Index to appreciate, amid expected improvement in banks’
balance sheets as AMCON commences operation,” they added.

Low gainers

The number of
gainers at the close of trading session closed lower on Thursday at 21
stocks, as against the 24 gainers recorded previous day; while losers
closed higher at 41 positions, compared with the 37 recorded on
Wednesday.

The Banking sector
led the market transaction volume yesterday with 126.29 million units
valued at N1.08 billion, as against the 155.56 million units valued at
N1.25 billion recorded the preceding day.

The volume recorded
in the sector was driven by transaction in the shares of Guaranty Trust
Bank, Zenith Bank, First Bank, FinBank, and Fidelity Bank. The total
volume of 68.35 million units valued at N774.84 million traded in the
shares of the five stocks accounted for 27.38 percent of the entire
market volume.