The Nigerian Exchange closed on a positive note at the end of Tuesday’s trading session, with the equity market adding N78bn to its value. This was driven by gains in MRS Oil Nigeria, Wapic Insurance, and Caverton Offshore Support Group.
The All-Share Index advanced by 128.31 points, representing a 0.13 per cent increase to close at 100,050.94 points. This reflects a one-week gain of 1.88 per cent, a four-week gain of 2.12 per cent, and a year-to-date gain of 33.8 per cent.
In total, the market capitalisation rose to N60.7tn.
Out of the 124 equities traded, 25 recorded gains, while 26 posted losses. MRS Oil Nigeria led the gainers, appreciating by 10 per cent to close at N145.20 per share. It was followed by Wapic Insurance, which also gained 10 per cent to close at N1.54. Caverton Offshore Support Group advanced by 9.68 per cent to settle at N2.38, while Lasaco Assurance rose by 9.41 per cent to close at N2.79.
On the flip side, Cutix Plc topped the losers chart with a 10 percent decline, closing at N2.25 per share. Tantalisers followed, depreciating by 9.73 percent to N1.67, while Daar Communications dropped by 7.02 percent to N0.53. Oando also fell by 6.1 percent to close at N68.50.
At the close of trading, a total of 477.88m shares were exchanged in 9,578 deals, corresponding to a market value of N21.39bn. This represents a 35 per cent decline in volume compared to the previous trading session, alongside a 27 per cent improvement in turnover and an 8 per cent drop in the number of deals.
E-Tranzact International recorded the highest trading volume with 70.2m shares, followed by Transcorp Hotels (70m), Oando (26.4m), and Veritas Kapital Assurance (21.3m).
The exchange indices closed mixed, with performances recorded in the insurance and oil & gas sectors. The Insurance Index rose by 1.56 per cent, posting a 5.37 per cent gain over the week and a year-to-date increase of 77.91 per cent. The Oil & Gas Index edged up by 0.06 per cent, maintaining a year-to-date gain of 157.64 per cent.
Other indices include the Main Board Index, which increased by 0.26 per cent, reflecting a 2.68 per cent weekly gain and a 40.28 per cent year-to-date rise. The Banking Index advanced by 0.19 per cent, while the Industrial Index dipped marginally by 0.02 per cent.
The Top 30 Index remained flat at 0 per cent but recorded a slight weekly decline of 0.09 per cent while maintaining a year-to-date gain of 32.85 per cent.
The PUNCH reported that the Nigerian equity market gained N704bn in six days, pushing the market capitalisation above N60tn.