The Nigerian Exchange witnessed a bullish trading session on Thursday, as market capitalisation climbed to N59.9tn, reflecting a gain of N152bn for investors.

This came amid 489.7 million shares exchanged across 8,304 deals, corresponding to a market value of N7.06bn. Compared to the previous session, the market saw a 53 per cent increase in volume, a 9 per cent rise in turnover, and a 5 per cent boost in deals.

The All-Share Index advanced by 0.25 per cent to close at 98,760.59 points, contributing to a one-week gain of 0.66 per cent, a four-week rise of 1.57 per cent, and a year-to-date growth of 32.08 per cent.

Conoil Plc led the gainers chart with a 10 per cent increase, closing at N387.20 per share. Other top gainers included Tantalisers, which also rose by 10 per cent to close at N1.76 per share, followed by Custodian & Allied, gaining 9.92 per cent to N13.85 per share. Africa Prudential recorded a 9.79 per cent increase to N15.70 per share, Golden Brewery appreciated by 9.75 per cent to N7.88 per share, and PZ Cussons added 9.11 per cent to close at N24.55 per share.

On the losing side, Daar Communications recorded the steepest decline, shedding 8.47 per cent to close at N0.54 per share. Caverton Offshore Support Group followed, dropping by 8.16 per cent to N1.80 per share. Omatek Ventures lost 7.46 per cent, closing at N0.62 per share, while Associated Bus Company and Continental Hallmark Plc fell by 7.41 per cent and 7.11 per cent to close at N1.25 and N2.22 per share, respectively. Sovereign Insurance also dipped by 5.81 per cent to close at N0.81 per share.

Sectoral performance was equally strong, with the Oil & Gas Index climbing 2.74 per cent, contributing to a year-to-date gain of 157.56 per cent. The Insurance Index rose by 0.82 per cent, achieving a year-to-date gain of 74.22 per cent. Similarly, the Consumer Goods Index appreciated by 0.32 per cent, culminating in a year-to-date increase of 42.74 per cent.

Market activity was dominated by FCMB Group, which recorded the highest volume of trades with 77.6 million shares exchanged. E-Tranzact International followed with 70.1 million shares, while Haldane McCall and Japaul Gold and Ventures traded 47.8 million and 33.6 million shares, respectively.

Culled from The Punch