The local stock market rose 0.17 percent on Friday, owing to continued bargain-hunting in the bourse’s key sectors.
Investors were interested in the banking, insurance, and consumer goods counters, which rose by 1.09 percent, 0.56 percent, and 0.08 percent, respectively.
Traders selected stocks in the segments hoping their prices will rise next week as the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited prepares for the Christmas holiday.
According to Entrepreneurng, during the buying pressure, some investors sold off some shares, particularly in the energy sector, resulting in the 0.11 percent loss reported in the space yesterday. The industrial goods sector, for its part, went bankrupt.
When the exchange closed for the day, the All-Share Index (ASI) had increased by 83.27 points to 49,316.29 points from 49,233.02 points, while market capitalisation had increased by N46 billion to N26.861 trillion from N26.815 trillion.
Zenith Bank was the most active equity during the session, selling 14.1 million units, followed by GTCO, which traded 13.6 million. Ecobank transacted 11.2 million units, UBA 7.7 million, and Fidelity Bank 4.7 million.
At the close of trades, a total of 103.7 million shares worth N2.0 billion were traded in 3,280 transactions, compared to 222.8 million shares worth N2.1 billion traded in 2,756 transactions the day before, representing a 19.01 percent increase in the number of transactions, a 53.46 percent decrease in trading volume, and a 4.76 percent decrease in trading value.
The market breadth was positive on the price movement chart, indicating that investor sentiment was strong, with 17 price gainers and 11 price losers.
UPDC led the risers’ chart with a 10% gain to 99 Kobo, while PZ Cussons gained 9.73% to N12.40. Thomas Wyatt increased by 9.62% to 57 Kobo, Champion Breweries increased by 9.33% to N4.10, and Neimeth increased by 9.02% to N1.45.
In contrast, Academy Press led the decliners with a 9.70% drop to N1.21, while Honeywell Flour fell 3.64 percent to N2.12. FTN Cocoa fell 3.13 percent to 31 Kobo, FCMB dropped 2.86 percent to N3.40, and UAC Nigeria fell 1.43 percent to N10.35.
