Equities market records marginal gain of 0.62%

The Nigerian Equities Market recorded its first gain in 2019, with a marginal appreciation of 0.62 per cent, as the purse closed at 29,517.73 leaving the Year-to-Date (YtD) return at -6.09 per cent. The 0.62 per cent gain was amid renewed bargain hunting as high caps stocks, such as Dangote Cement and Guaranty Trust Bank Plc were the toast of investors on Thursday. Similarly, the Exchange registered 21 gainers against 15 losers even as market capitalisation increased by N67.47 billion, bouncing back to N11.01 trillion. The volume of trades stood at approximately 385 million shares in contrast to 235 million shares, indicating 64.03 per cent incline. The value recorded N3.07 billion as against N2.25 billion naira, representing 36.61 per cent increase from previous trading levels. Transactions in the shares of Custodian, Access Bank, FBN Holding Plc, Diamond Bank and United Bank for Africa Plc topped the activity chart as most traded equities as measured by volume. All Share Index (ASI) and all sector indices threaded northward save for Insurance, Consumer Goods and Lotus Islam index. Analyst believed the direction of the index across sectors was partially uncertain as major political news/information will have an ample effect going forward on investors’ sentiment, therefore advising investors to tread with caution as the election approaches. Temitope Adebayo