Equity market starts week bearish as investors’ apathy persists

The equities market closed yesterday on a negative note, as Nigerian Stock Exchange [NSE] All Share Index [ASI] depreciated by 0.35 per cent to close at 34,272.09 basis points, compared with the 0.54 per cent depreciation recorded previously. Its Year-to-Date (YTD) returns currently stands at 1.46 per cent.

Market breadth closed negative as Vono led 21gainers against 26losers topped by Abctrans at the end of yesterday’s session- an improved performance when compared with previous outlook.
Market turnover closes positive as volume moved up by 9.12 per cent against 2.97 per cent decline recorded in the previous session.

UBA, Access and FCMB were the most active to boost market turnover. Nigerian Breweries and Wapco topped market value list.

Volume shockers included Abctrans which led the list of active stocks that recorded impressive volume spike at the end of yesterday’s session.

Meanwhile, at the National Association of Securities Dealers [NASD] Over-The-Counter[OTC], the process for trading securities of unlisted public companies has been further simplified by the recent Securities and Exchange [SEC] rule which makes it mandatory for all transfers of such securities to be carried out on a SEC registered trading platform.

NASD OTC market is licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission to cater for dealings in the securities of unlisted public companies.

There are currently 21 securities being traded on NASD OTC market as a result of the securities being introduced by participating institutions (stockbroking firms).

However, all other unlisted public companies which are currently not on the list are also eligible and can also be traded