Investors were swayed to sustain their appetite for the equity market on Tuesday as a result of the encouraging financial statements of companies on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
Business Post reports that Customs Street gained 2.03 per cent during the session, with 51 stocks closing in green and 25 stocks in red, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Berger Paints chalked up 10.00 per cent to sell for N34.10, Haldane McCall grew by 10.00 per cent to N4.73, Learn Africa appreciated by 10.00 per cent to N6.93, Thomas Wyatt improved by 10.00 per cent to N3.19, and Ellah Lakes jumped by 9.99 per cent to N9.80.
Conversely, Northern Nigeria Flour Mills lost 10.00 per cent to quote at N93.15, Abbey Mortgage Bank crashed by 10.00 per cent to N7.20, Vitafoam shrank by 9.96 per cent to N79.10, Industrial and Medical Gases gave up 9.93 per cent to finish at N37.65, and International Breweries slipped by 7.10 per cent to N15.05.
It was observed that apart from the consumer goods index, which closed lower by 0.27 per cent due to profit-taking in International Breweries, every other sector closed higher yesterday.
The industrial goods space rose by 2.93 per cent, the insurance counter appreciated by 1.93 per cent, the banking sector improved by 1.62 per cent, and the energy industry gained 0.19 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 2,746.36 points to 137,912.87 points from 135,166.51 points and the market capitalisation went up by N1.736 trillion to N87.191 trillion from N85.455 trillion.
A look at the level of activity showed that 940.8 million shares worth N30.6 billion exchanged hands in 28,358 deals on Tuesday versus the 795.6 million shares worth N23.2 billion traded in 37,626 deals on Monday, representing a shortfall in the number of deals by 24.63 per cent, and a leap in the trading volume and value by 18.25 per cent and 31.90 per cent apiece.
The rise in the turnover was driven by significant transactions in Fidelity Bank, selling 111.3 million units for N2.3 billion, as Royal Exchange traded 74.1 million units valued at N110.8 million, Jaiz Bank exchanged 60.9 million units worth N238.2 million, Universal Insurance transacted 38.3 million units worth N28.8 million, and Access Holdings traded 36.8 million units valued at N1.0 billion.