Persistent sell pressure drags Nigerian equity market down

Persistent sell pressure on bellwether stocks like Zenith Bank, FBNH, Access Bank and 23 other dragged the Nigerian equity market down by 0.90 per cent, reversing previous day’s positive gains.
The All-Share Index (ASI) was lower by 220.65 absolute points, representing a 0.90 per cent decline to close at 24,374.40 points, while the Market Capitalization shed N115.07 million, contracting 0.90 per cent to close at N12.72 trillion.
NEIMETH emerged as the top gainer of the seven advancers, having added 9.40 per cent, while GLAXOSMITH and CAPHOTEL emerged as the top of the 26 losers, both shedding 10 per cent.
Investors exchanged a total of 180.1 million shares worth ₦1.8 billion, as volume dropped by 9.0 per cent and value of equities traded was up 78.2 per cent from the previous trading session.
UBA which sold 23.9m units emerged the most active equity in volume term, followed FBNH (21.6m units) and GUARANTY (21.1m units), while GTBank (₦446.0m), ZENITH (₦236.5m) and AIRTELAFRI (₦232.0m) led by value.
The Banking index (-4.6 per cent) lost the most on the back of sell-offs in GTbank (-5.3 per cent), Zenith Bank (-5.7 per cent) and UBN (-9.3 per cent). It was followed by the Insurance (-1.0 per cent) and Consumer Goods (-0.9 per cent) indices, driven by decline by CORNERSTONE (-9.1 er cent), AIICO (-1.1 per cent), UNILEVER (-9.8 per cemt) and Flour Mills (-5.4 per cent).
The Oil & Gas and Industrial Goods indices shed 0.3 per cent and 0.02 per cent respectively due to sell pressures in OANDO (-3.4 per cent) and WAPCO (-0.5 per cent).
Meanwhile, the year-to-date performance of the bourse worsened to -9.2 per cent.