Investors lost N904 billion on Tuesday as sell-offs in major stocks dragged the equities market into negative territory.

The decline ended a four-day rally on the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX).

Heavy profit-taking in Guinness Nigeria, Union Dicon Salt, AIICO Insurance, Wema Bank, MTN Nigeria and others pressured market performance.

At the close, market capitalisation dropped from N156.056 trillion to N155.152 trillion. This represented a loss of N904 billion, or 0.58 per cent.

The All-Share Index also declined by 1,408.82 points, or 0.58 per cent. It closed at 241,750.15, against 243,158.97 recorded on Monday.

Consequently, the market’s year-to-date return moderated to 55.35 per cent.

Despite the losses, market sentiment remained positive, with 46 gainers and 26 losers.

Vitafoam Nigeria, Zichis Agro Allied Industries, RT Briscoe and McNichols topped the gainers’ chart.

Each appreciated by 10 per cent during the session, with Vitafoam closing at N170.50, Zichis at N25.08, and RT Briscoe at N12.87.

McNichols also ended the session at N7.92 per share. Chemical and Allied Products Plc also advanced by 9.99 per cent, settling at N175.65 per share.

On the losers’ table, Guinness Nigeria shed 10 per cent, closing at N447.30 per share.

Union Dicon Salt declined by 9.82 per cent to N19.75. AIICO Insurance lost 9.28 per cent, ending at N4.30 per share.

Wema Bank fell by 8.72 per cent to N30.35. MTN Nigeria also dropped by 8.63 per cent to N836 per share.

Trading activity weakened, with total volume down by 9.85 per cent.

A total of 1.27 billion shares worth N75.23 billion exchanged hands. Transactions were executed across 102,665 deals during the session.

FCMB Group Plc led the volume chart with 160.59 million shares traded. This accounted for 12.66 per cent of total volume.

Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc recorded the highest transaction value at N13.09 billion. This represented 17.40 per cent of the day’s total turnover. 

(NAN)