The Nigerian equities market closed the week on a positive note, extending its rising profile as investors gained N106 billion.

The NGX all-share index (ASI) settled at 165,370.4 points, as market capitalisation advanced by 0.18 per cent to N106.15 trillion from N105.96 trillion in the prior week.

This increase was driven by the additional listing of 125 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each by Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc and 166 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each by Presco Plc. Consequently, the market recorded an approximate N194 billion increase in value, while the year-to-date return moderated to 6.82 per cent.
Market breadth remained negative at 0.88x, as 43 gainers were outweighed by 49 decliners, signalling cautious investor participation despite pockets of selective bargain hunting. Trading activity also softened over the week, with total deals, traded volume, and traded value declining by 6.31 per cent, 17.64 per cent and 18.34 per cent, respectively.

By the end of the week, investors exchanged a total of 3.09 billion shares valued at N81.58 billion across 222,318 deals, reflecting cautious positioning and persistent sell-offs.
Sectoral performance was mixed, broadly reflecting the subdued market sentiment. Insurance, Consumer Goods, Oil & Gas, Industrial Goods, and Commodity sectors posted gains of 0.81 per cent, 0.69 per cent, 0.06 per cent, 0.09 per cent, and 0.01 per cent, respectively, while the banking sector declined by 0.67 per cent week-on-week.

Zichis emerged as the top performer, recording a 59.9 per cent appreciation, followed by Omatek, which advanced by 49.3 per cent. Uhomreit also posted a strong rally of 32.9 per cent, while Morison and Scoa both gained 32.8 per cent, reflecting heightened investor demand for these counters.

On the downside, sustained selling pressure weighed heavily on a number of stocks. Neimeth led the laggards with a 26 per cent decline, closely followed by Livingtrust, which shed 21.4 per cent. May and Baker retreated by 19.5 per cent, while Livestock and Austinlaz declined by 13.7 per cent and 13.1 per cent respectively, as investors continued to exit these positions.

Looking ahead, the equities market is expected to remain cautious in the near term, with profit-taking and weak liquidity weighing on sentiment. However, the ongoing release of corporate earnings may drive selective buying in stocks with strong results and dividend potential.
Overall, the market is likely to trade range-bound with a mild bearish bias, increasingly guided by earnings performance.