Bearish trading sentiment persisted on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), on Wednesday, dragging the benchmark All-Share Index down by 0.2 percent to 140,716.10 basis points.

The decline trimmed year-to-date gains to 36.7 percent and month-to-date performance to 0.3 percent, while investors lost about N135.13 billion in market value, leaving total capitalisation at N89.06 trillion.

Losses in heavyweights MTN Nigeria, down by 4.8 percent; JAIZ Bank, by 4.4 percent, and Wapic Insurance, down by 8.8 percent, were the major drags on the market.

Market breadth remained negative as 28 stocks declined against 23 advancers. DEAP Capital and Management Trust, dipped by 9.4 nine percent, and Legend Intercontinental, down by 9.3 percent, led the laggards, while Dangote Sugar and Mecure Industries gained the most, each rising 10 percent.

Other notable gainers included Cornerstone Insurance, Secure Electronic Technology and UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust.

Sectoral performance was broadly mixed. The Banking index led with a 1.3 percent rise, buoyed by gains in top-tier lenders, followed by Consumer Goods, up 0.6 percent, and Industrial Goods, up 0.3 percent.

Conversely, the Insurance index fell by 0.3 percent and Oil and Gas slipped by 0.1 percent, while the Commodity sector finished flat.

Trading activity weakened across key indicators. Total transaction volume fell 41.7 percent to 442.56 million shares, while market value dropped 3.4 percent to N16.97 billion. Deals also slowed by 8.3 percent to 21,684.

Zenith Bank was the most traded stock by both volume and value, exchanging 68.99 million units worth N4.76 billion.

Market analysts attributed the sustained bearish mood to profit-taking in large-cap stocks and cautious investor sentiment amid macroeconomic headwinds. They advised investors to remain selective, focusing on fundamentally strong equities ahead of upcoming third-quarter earnings releases.

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