The Nigerian All-Share Index closed lower on Wednesday, August 20, extending its losing streak as it shed 1,047.16 points to settle at 141,566.31.
This followed a sharp drop of over 2,100 points the previous day, with the index slipping by 0.73% from Tuesday’s close of 142,613.47.
Trading activity was also weaker, as market volume eased to 721.8 million shares from 1.02 billion shares recorded the day before.
Market capitalization fell below the N90 trillion mark, closing at N89.5 trillion across 28,745 deals, compared to N90.2 trillion previously.
AUSTINLAZ and CHAMPION led the gainers’ chart, advancing by 10% and 9.97% respectively.
On the downside, GUINNESS and CONOIL both dipped by 9.98% each.
In terms of activity, CHAMPION and UNIVINSURE emerged as the most heavily traded stocks of the day.
Market activity slowed further as turnover declined from 1.02 billion shares to 721.8 million shares.
In value terms, tier-one banks and blue chips dominated:
The SWOOTs (Stocks Worth Over One Trillion Naira) posted a mixed performance:
Among the FUGAZ banks:
On the upside, ZENITH BANK gained 1.42%, while FIRSTHOLD and UBA closed flat.
The market is in a retracement phase, with the index on course to dip below the 141,000 level, and potentially 140,000, if bearish sentiment persists.
Further weakness in large-cap stocks could accelerate the overall market decline.