The Nation Newspaper

Tag: investors

  • Govt seeks investors in insurance sector

    After about decade ban on issuance of fresh operating licences to investors, the Federal Government  is set to issue new licences to interested investors that can operate only as a Tier 1 company.

    The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM Assistant Director, Coporate Affairs Department, Rasaaq Salami,  said the industry is ready to admit new investors in a circular released to reporters in Lagos.

    This is coming on the heels of the introduction of Tier Based Minimum Solvency Capital Policy that will lead to recapitalisation and recategorisation of insurance companies in the country into Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 companies.

    The circular reads: “NAICOM being the regulatory authority of the  insurance  sector  in  Nigeria  hereby  pronounces  that  in  line  with  the  recently introduced  Tier-Based  Minimum  Solvency  Capital  Policy,  new  licences  are  now available for Tier 1 Level in both the Life and Non-Life business categories. Consequently, interested investors are by this pronouncement advised to access the Commission’s website for full details of the application procedures.”

    Commissioner for Insurance, Mohammed Kari said the industry witnessed the last recapitalisation in 2005 to 2007 and since then, the operating environment has witnessed series of turbulence and uncertainties.

    He also said the previous capital framework was rule-based, and risk factors of business lines within each insurance segment which vary significantly, were not considered.

    He explained that immediately after the 2005/7 exercise, the 2008 global financial crisis set in, with far reaching effect on the wealth of insurers.

    He said: “This was followed with significant upward increase in risks arising from macro-economic environment such as inflation rate, interest rate and devaluation of the national currency, and other factors.

     

  • Investors stake N23.03b on equities

    Investors staked about N23.03 billion on quoted shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) last week. Total turnover at the Exchange stood at 1.53 billion shares worth N23.026 billion in 17,009 deals last week compared with a total of 968.947 million shares valued at N10.246 billion traded in 9,654 deals in the previous week. There were five tradings last week as against three  two weeks ago due to public holiday for the Muslim’s Eid-ul-Kabir.

    Financial services stocks were the most-traded stocks, in terms of volume, with a turnover of 1.218 billion shares valued at N12.634 billion in 10,132 deals, representing 79.42 per cent and 54.87 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

    Conglomerates sector ranked second on the activity chart with 70.807 million shares worth N120.611 million in 803 deals. Consumer goods sector placed third with a turnover of 58.505 million shares worth N3.422 billion in 2,624 deals.

    The three most active stocks were NEM Insurance Plc, Diamond Bank Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc, which altogether accounted for 512.615 million shares worth N1.928 billion in 1,818 deals, representing 33.44 per cent and 8.38 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

    Also traded during the week were a total of 2,422 units of Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) valued at N3.752 million in 15 deals as against a total of 9,205 units valued at N201,119 traded in four deals two weeks ago.

    In the sovereign debt segment, a total of 42,158 units of Federal and State Government bonds valued at N42.397 million were traded last week in 25 deals compared with a total of 152,741 units valued at N179.381 million traded in 13 deals penultimate week.

     

  • Investors lose N688b in one month amid selloffs

    Equities closed the weekend with the second steepest decline this year as investors continued cautious trading amid concerns that political risks could slow down economic programmes and further hurt corporate earnings.

    Quoted equities lost N688 billion in capital depreciation in August, the second highest loss this year, despite the release of first half corporate earnings and interim dividend payments by large-cap stocks.

    The decline in August worsened the net capital depreciation in value of quoted equities so far this year to a loss of N887 billion. Benchmark indices at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) indicated average price decline of 5.86 per cent in August, depressing the negative average year-to-date return to -8.88 per cent.

    This implies that on the average, investors have lost about 8.9 per cent of the value of their portfolios so far this year.

    Stockbroking firms under the auspices of the Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) said political risks were part of the major concerns of domestic and foreign investors.

    August was characterised by high-wired political activities including defections, continuing bickering between the executive and legislative arms.

    ASHON said unguarded activities and unrestrained utterances of politicians were heating up the polity with dire consequences on the economy, particularly the capital market.

    “Perhaps we may remind the political class that uncertainties and all sorts of insecurities that  pervade our country affect investors’ sentiments, asset valuations, market and country risk profile and portfolio allocation decisions.

    “In recent times,trading statistics on the securities markets in Nigeria has been reflecting investors’ apathy to unprecedented level of tension that portends likely breakdown of law and order in the 2019 general elections,” ASHON said after the stock market suffered losses for three weeks.

    Stockbrokers said foreign portfolio investors and local investors embarked on massive sell down of shares and other financial instruments, which has led to the erosion of values, despite somewhat stellar performances by many listed companies.

    Investment Research Analyst, FSDH Securities Limited, Babajide Sholanke, said foreign portfolio investors were anxious due to normalisation of monetary policies in the United States (U.S) and weak macroeconomic outlook.

    According to him, foreign investors were exiting to manage cost of capital and safety in U.S assets, a move that was compounded by the weak  macroeconomic outlook in the country with decline in oil production and increasing risk of a shortfall in government revenue and possible foreign exchange crisis.

    The All Share Index (ASI) – the main index that tracks share prices at the NSE, closed weekend at 34,848.45 points as against its index-on-board of 37,017.78 points, representing average decline of 5.86 per cent within the month.

    Aggregate market value of  quoted equities on the Exchange also dropped by 5.13 per cent or N688 billion to close at N12.722 trillion compared with its opening value of N13.410 trillion for the month.

    Local equities have so far lost N1.14 trillion in Q3, eroding the modest net capital gain of N257 billion recorded at the end of the first half. Equities lost N456 billion in July, setting off a reversal that left investors with a seven-month net loss of N199 billion as against net capital gain of N257 billion recorded at the end of first half.

    Analysts at Afrinvest Securities said they expected the “sell pressures to persist over the near-term given the general negative mood in the market, and lack of drivers to sway the market to the positive region”.

    From a net capital gain of about N1.7 trillion at the height of its rally in the first quarter, equities  closed the second quarter almost flat with average gain of 0.09 per cent for the six-month period ended June 30, 2018, compared with average gain of 8.53 per cent recorded at the end of Q1.

    Equities recorded average loss of 7.77 per cent in the second quarter, equivalent to net capital depreciation of N1.13 trillion compared with capital gain of N1.384 trillion recorded by the end of first quarter. The ASI closed the first half at 38,278.55 points as against its 2018’s opening index of 38,243.19 points.

    Aggregate market value of all quoted equities on the NSE closed the six-month period at N13.866 trillion as against N13.609 trillion recorded at the beginning of the year, representing net gain of N257 billion or 1.88 per cent. The difference between the ASI and aggregate market value was due to supplementary listings of shares.

    Aggregate market value of all quoted equities had closed the first quarter of 2018 at N14.993 trillion as against its year’s opening value of N13.609 trillion, representing a net increase of N1.384 trillion or 10.17 per cent. The ASI also rose from its 2018’s opening index of 38,243.19 points to close the first quarter at 41,504.51 points, representing average gain of 8.53 per cent.

    Equities last January hit all-time high with market capitalisation of N15.3 trillion while the ASI rose to 43,041.54 points, its highest index points since October 2008. However, profit-taking fluctuations that started in March 2018 worsened considerably into a swinging selloff in May 2018. Equities lost N1.15 trillion last May, equivalent to average month-on-month decline of 7.67 per cent. Equities lost N557 billion in March and showed restraint with a modest loss of N44 billion in April.

    The chequered performance of the stock market in first half 2018 counterbalanced the optimism that started the year as Nigerian equities closed 2017 with full-year average return of 42.30 per cent, ranking within the top 10 best-performing equities across the world. Aggregate market value of quoted equities had closed 2017 with net capital appreciation of N4.36 trillion.

     

  • ‘Why investors aren’t funding women-led startups’

    The need to close the gap of low investors’ interest in women–led start-ups was the focus of a high-level roundtable organised by Rising Tide Africa (RTA) in Lagos at the weekend. The event brought together a diverse panel of funders and entrepreneurs, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Why are women entrepreneurs finding it difficult to raise money in the male-dominated venture capital industry? Why are start-ups founded or co-founded by women garnering fewer investments?

    These were questions raised during the Master Class session organised by RTA in Lagos at the weekend.

    The event brought together a diverse panel of funders and entrepreneurs.

    RTA co-founder Dr Ndidi Nnoli-Edozien observed that when women business owners pitched their ideas to investors for early stage capital, they received significantly less funding.

    It was a question she wanted participants to address with many women complaining of poor access to funds to expand their businesses.

    According to her, the investment gap is real and huge. Studies, she noted, have shown that a few women-led start-ups are backed by venture capital.

    She asked: “So, why do female entrepreneurs continue to receive less money than their male counterparts?”

    She said it was basically impossible to know whether this was due to gender bias.

    While there may be many reasons why female founders get far less of a proportion of venture funding than their male counterparts, she said one of the key reasons is the lack of diversity in venture capital (VC) firms. She observed that there are few women running VC firms.

    So what can be done?

    For the situation to change, she said VC firms need to add more female investors and more female run firms have to emerge for change to take place.

    For female entrepreneurs to make progress, she urged women to sit back and challenge their own perceptions of what a business leader looks and acts like.

    Addressing the obstacles that prevent women from starting their own businesses, she added, was a critical part of the solution. One hurdle is education and training.

    She  said the Masterclass  session is one of RTA’s quarterly initiatives targeted at providing quality training to new and existing business owners to help them navigate some of the complexities of running a successful business in Nigeria; and to enable able investors to build a diversified portfolio of investments.

    Dr Nnoli-Edozien said the organisation  functions as part of a global movement   The Rising Tide Programme for Africa.

    She said RTA is determined to ensure the success of high-growth startups founded and led by women.

    To this end, she said the organisation has launched a female-focused angel investment fund, aimed at allowing female investors to back innovative startups run by women.

    She said investments of between $50,000 and $500,000 will be made into startups, with the fund aimed at both women that are new to angel investing and experienced investors.

    The Regional Head, Africa Venture Capital , International Finance Corporation(IFC), Wale Ayeni  said the corporation’s  VC arm invests in growth-stage companies that offer innovative technologies or business models geared at emerging markets.

    Ayeni said IFC is interested in supporting women-led startups and exploring    investment opportunities that will enable entrepreneurs compare to their global peers.

    According to him, the IFC is focused on entrepreneurs in both large and small markets as long as the potential to scale rapidly is there.

    He observed  that start-ups in Nigeria and other parts of Africa have huge opportunities to achieve scale and become market players, but stressed that the founders need to have a bigger vision and dream more.

    According to him, IFC led the $8.6 million Series A equity investment in Africa’s Talking, a Kenyan based communication-platform-as-a-service (cPAAS) startup, to enable it expand across Africa.

    As part of the deal, Ayeni joined the board.

    Another co-founder, Yemi Keri said the  gender gap in venture funding has important implications  as markedly lower levels of participation of women entrepreneurs in economic  building poses a threat to overall national competitiveness.

    She explained that women entrepreneurs face challenges in getting access to thought-leaders — people who can help them think through problems they may be facing: social capital, intellectual capital, and things that are important in addition to financial capital that is why RTA is trying to address this through such fora.

    Keri stressed that the group is determined to train and mentor women.

    The Moderator and Corporate Counsel, EchoVC Pan-Africa Fund, Ms. Damilola Thompson, stressed the need to train women to become more aware of entrepreneurship as a viable path.

    According to her, women need to learn how to start a business, what the challenges are, the risks and the potential.

    She stressed the importance of mentoring younger start-up founders in search of capital, and encouraging women who were thinking of beginning a business.

     

  • U.S. investors to revitalise NIGERCEM

    Ateam of foreign investors from the United States (U.S) yesterday pledged to support both the core investor and Chief Executive Officer, Ibeto Nigeria Limited, Chief Cletus Ibeto and Ebonyi State government to revitalise NIGERCEM.

    The team, in collaboration with Ibeto Nigeria Limited,  embarked on an assessment visit to the premises of the cement firm as part of the rigorous  process of actualising the listing of Ibeto  in the U.S.

    Addressing stakeholders at the firm’s premises, Chief Ibeto said the delegation were on self-assessment tour of the firm.

    Ibeto said prior to the visit,  another team of Chinese contractors were in the state three weeks ago to finalise arrangements on the revitalisation  of the cement factory.

    He said: “I am standing before you with a team of American financiers who are here on an assessment visit to the cement company; they are here to see for themselves what is here at NIGERCEM cement company.

    “The team will help in the realisation of the dream of Ibeto  Group together with the Ebonyi  State government in actualising the revitalisation of the company.

    “Very soon, production would commence in NIGERCEM with the production of 6,000 metric tons of cement per day.

    “The Chinese team which visited the state before now would be working on designing; they would ensure that the 2015 contract agreement signed by Ibeto Group Limited and the host community Nkalagu is executed to the letter.”

    He said at the end of the assessment visit by the foreign financiers, every modalities on the revitalisation of the company would  take take effect.

    The leader of the American foreign investors, Mrs Amanda Wester, said the team would support both the core investor, Ibeto Nigeria Limited and the Ebonyi State government to ensure the revitalisation of NIGERCEM.

    The state governor, David Umahi, commended the investors and Ibeto Nigeria Limited for the commitment in ensuring the resuscitation of the company.

    “We extol Ibeto Nigeria Limited, the core investor in NIGERCEM, in their commitment to establish a new 6,000 tons per day dry process cement plant, 45 megawatt (Mw) capacity power plant in this first phase of the project at Nkalagu.

    “I wish to welcome specially our core investors and Dream Team from the U.S. (financiers) to Ebonyi State in their determination to revive Nkalagu cement and commence production in no distant time,” Umahi said.

    He said the state government has enacted  Investors Protection Act  that ensures that the government offers an  Irrevocable Standing Payment Order (ISPO) that insulates the investor from government interference and any change of administration.

    “No doubt, the brand Ibeto is a renowned household name in Nigeria and beyond that epitomises quality which has been tested and trusted. It is also a name which is synonymous with success in its endeavours,”  he said.

    The chairman of Ishielu Local Government Area, Mr Henry Eze assured that the local community would provide an enabling environment for the exploration and other activities in the company.

    He commended the state governor for his support and  efforts at revitalising the cement factory, noting that it was a dream come true for the community and the people of the state.

  • Ambode assures investors

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has reiterated his administration’s commitment to the safety of life and property of Lagosians, including investors.

    He said their security would not be compromised.

    The governor, represented by Special Adviser on Communities and Communications Hakeem Omoyele Sulaimon, spoke yesterday at the inauguration of Orimedu Police Post in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government.

    He said: “In realisation that no meaningful development can be achieved in an atmosphere of unrest, fear and uncertainty, the present administration is determined and committed towards ensuring a secure and safer Lagos. This, among others, has made our administration to enjoy the goodwill and partnership of well-meaning individuals and the organised private sector, who have made substantial contributions to the Lagos State Trust Fund. The government has used the donations to raise the capacity of security agencies, with the provision of modern crime fighting equipment.”

    Ambode solicited more cooperation and support from residents for security agencies through timely information sharing, saying: “We must work together to create a crime-free state conducive to investment and pleasure.”

    Police Commissioner Imohimi Edgal, represented by Area J Commander Felix Oben, thanked Medview Airline for donating the building. He promised that the command would ensure security in the area and Lagos State.

    Edgal praised the governor for his provision for the command.

    Ibeju Lekki Local Government Chairman Dr. Olorunkemi Surakat hailed the government for the provision of the police post and other infrastructure.

    He assured that the structure built and donated by the airline as part of its corporate social responsibility, would be put to proper use.

  • Investors face downtime in second half as uncertainties stoke fears

    Investors in the capital market will struggle with low returns in the second half of this year and may end the year with less-than-previously projected returns as macro-economic risks combine with political risks to weaken the immediate return horizon for Nigerian assets.

    Major investment firms at the weekend were unanimous on the precarious outlook for the second half, with most analysts reviewing downward earlier return projections made for the year. Nigerian equities had closed first half almost flat with a marginal average gain of 0.09 per cent, after reaching as high average return of 17.9 per cent in January 2018.

    Nigerian equities recorded net capital loss of N236 billion in the first week of the second half, pushing the average year-to-date return further negative at -1.61 per cent. The benchmark index for Nigerian equities had recorded average decline of 1.71 per cent for the five-day trading period.

    Analysts at Cordros Capital, GTI Capital and Afrinvest Securities said while the Nigerian equities market still hold good prospects in the medium to long-term, the immediate outlook calls for caution and readjustments.

    “While still optimistic about the macro-economic climate over the second half of the year – highlighted by stable macros – the combination of heightened political concerns locally and continued external market risks necessitate a readjustment of our prior guidance to cater to a more cautious market outlook,” Cordros Capital stated in  its mid-year report.

    Afrinvest Securities said the determining factors for 2018 including earnings fundamentals of companies; stability in the foreign exchange market and fund flow dynamics to emerging and frontier markets had been “skewed towards negative than positive” and are expected to continue to be the major themes during the second half.

    “Although we had forecast a 19.8 per cent return for the market (base case), emerging events in 2018, especially policy normalisation in global markets as well as risk factors around the 2019 general election present compelling reasons to revise our forecast,” Afrinvest stated.

    With this consideration, Afrinvest halved its base case to 10.0 per cent with a bear case of 2.2 per cent and bullish case of 18.3 per cent. This implies that equities’ return might hover between 2.2 per cent and 18.3 per cent, according to the investment firm.

    Afrinvest also placed a higher probability of 50.0 per cent on its 2.2 per cent bear case, noting that market performance will continue to be pressured by capital flow reversals ahead of the 2019 general election.

    “Nevertheless, we do not rule out the possibility of positives that could boost sentiment; thus, we place a 30 per cent probability on our base case scenario with the most unlikely 20 per cent chance of occurrence on our bull case. Even though our revised market projection suggests reduced return for 2018, we still expect a positive performance for the year,” Afrinvest stated.

    According to analysts at Cordros, in the short to medium term, sideways trading is likely to remain the theme in the absence of a near-term positive trigger. However, macroeconomic fundamentals remain strong and supportive of gains in the long term.

    Analysts at GTI Capital noted that the slowdown witnessed in the stock market was due to both domestic and external factors, with the main domestic factor being the political climate.

    “In the light of all these issues, our outlook for the Nigerian Equities in second half 2018 is moderately negative. From late August when the election season begins with the primaries, we expect the air of uncertainty, which the election brings to weigh on the stock market, causing increased selloffs  by foreign portfolio investors, also influencing domestic investors to do the same,” GTI Capital stated.

    Analysts said the stock market will witness increased volatility as bargain-hunters step up speculative trading on undervalued stocks.

    Turnover at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) declined to 1.84 billion shares worth N16.59 billion in 18,941 deals last week as against a total of 2.0 billion shares valued at N21.58 billion traded in 18,534 deals two weeks ago.

    Aggregate market value of all quoted equities at the NSE dropped from its opening value of N13.866 trillion to close at the weekend at N13.630 trillion. The All Share Index (ASI)-the main index for the Exchange declined from opening index of 38,278.55 points to close weekend at 37,625.59 points.

  • PENGASSAN warns investors against Petrobras’ asset

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has warned the investing publics against purchasing any assets of the Petrobras Nigeria Limited.

    According to the senior staff trade union, Petrobras management had shown lack of respect  for the association as a viable stakeholder in the industry.

    In a letter signed by its General Secretary, Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa, major industry agencies, such as the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), related Federal Government agencies, including but not limited to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), International Oil Companies (IOCs) and banks have been notified of the risks in buying Petrobras assets.

    PENGASSAN alleged that the company was involved in anti-union practices, such as severance of workers without due process, refusal to settle severed workers’benefits and abuse of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

    “The general public is hereby notified of the following practices by Petrobras Nigeria Limited in relation to PENGASSAN: Lack of respect and regard of the Association as a viable stakeholder in the Industry;unceremonious severance of our members in 2013 and 2015 respectively, following the unannounced divestment of 2013,without due settlement of their benefits; continued unilateral interpretation, and abuse of the extant Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in relation to our members severance benefits.

     

     

  • Don urges investors to imbibe sustainable development

    Financiers and investors in Nigeria need to imbibe the principles of sustainable finance and investment and ensure that their financing and investment decisions take into consideration possible negative social and environmental impacts.

    Director, Sustainable Business Initiative, University of Edinburg Business School, Professor Kenneth Amaeshi, said investors and financiers should play primary roles as drivers for adoption of sustainable development by supporting projects, which positively impact not only the economy, but the nation’s social and governance structures.

    Amaeshi, who was the guest speaker at the Finance and Investment Dialogue on Prospects for Sustainable Finance and Investment in Nigeria, organised by GTI Capital Limited in collaboration with Business AM newspaper, said the adoption of principles of sustainability will lead to progressive government and increased profitability for Nigerian companies.

    He noted that projects by companies have both economic and social costs, but most companies pay more attention to economic cost instead of working towards eliminating or reducing social costs.

    “Sustainability is about how companies make their money, the challenge is to find ways of reducing negative impacts while increasing positive impacts,” Amaeshi said.

    He noted that financiers and investors had contributed to creating many of the societal problems by providing funds to companies, which engage in environmental degradation and health hazards among others.

    While urging investors and finance companies to use their funds to drive adoption of principles of sustainability, he pointed out that they stand to make more returns on their investments as the society, the economy and governance improve.

    According to him, while it may appear that there is no direct link between sustainability and profitability, there is an indirect relationship as the resultant improvement in reputation, greater resource management, employee productivity, customer loyalty and community goodwill will bring increased and sustainable profits.

    “By reducing social costs, you become more efficient and increase the goodwill of the company, which will turn to profit in due course,” Amaeshi said.

    He urged companies on voluntary compliance, noting that the nation’s financial services regulators are already working on a common programme to enforce principles of sustainability, which may come into effect by 2020.

    GTI Capital Limited Group Managing Director, Mr. Abubakar Lawal, said the dialogue series was borne out of the company’s desire to make meaningful impact on Nigeria and Africa as a whole.

    According to him, GTI is committed to a vision to impact Nigeria and influence Africa through positive contributions to national development.

    He emphasised the need for citizen-led participatory process that will lead to adoption of sustainable financing and investment, which will in turn benefit the general citizenry while helping the government to harness greater productivity and national wealth.

    The Business AM Managing Director, Mr Phillips Isakpain, in his remarks,  emphasised the need for futuristic thinking as a driving point for agenda setting.

    “Our discussion about Nigeria should be futuristic. A lot of the things that we do tend to remain current or in the past, but Nigeria deserves to begin to talk about the future. Our children should be paramount in our discussions on how to move forward as a nation,” Isakpa said.

  • Investors earn N94b gain on N18.46b trades

    Investors earned N94 billion in net capital in four tradings last week as quoted equities rode on the back of bargain-hunting to stage a recovery.

    After steep declines in the previous weeks, equities started the week with a strong rally that retained considerable value by the weekend, despite profit-taking transactions that dragged the last two trading sessions of the week to negative.

    With 40 gainers to 28 losers, average return for last week closed weekend at 0.67 per cent, equivalent to net capital gain of N94 billion. The recovery reversed the negative year-to-date return to positive at a modest 1.79 per cent.

    Aggregate market value of all quoted equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) rose from its week’s opening value of N14.008 trillion to close at N14.102 trillion. The All Share Index (ASI)-the common index that tracks share prices at the Exchange, also trended upward from its index on board of 38,669.23 points to close at 38,928.02 points.

    Investors traded a total turnover of 1.74 billion shares worth N18.46 billion in 14,790 deals last week compared with a total of 1.75 billion shares valued at N31.18 billion traded in 24,604 deals two weeks ago. The financial services sector was the most active chart with a turnover of 1.17 billion shares valued at N9.695 billion traded in 7,809 deals; representing 67.35 per cent and 52.51 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

    The services industry occupied a distant second position on the activities chart with 293.492 million shares worth N733.407 million in 531 deals while consumer goods sector placed third with 154.09 million shares worth N4.997 billion in 3,002 deals.

    The three most active stocks were United Capital Plc, Ikeja Hotel Plc and United Bank for Africa (UBA)Plc, which altogether accounted for 811.75 million shares worth N3.89 billion in 986 deals, representing 46.71 per cent and 21.05 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value.

    Also traded during the week were a total of 62,392 units of Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) valued at N1.004 million executed in 13 deals, compared with a total of 202,916 units valued at N1.168 million traded in 19 deals two weeks ago.

    In the sovereign debt segment, a total of 9,850 units of Federal Government valued at N9.999 million were traded last week in 10 deals compared with a total of 10,561 units valued at N10.381 million traded in 20 deals penultimate week.

    Pricing trend analysis showed that there were 40 gainers and 28 losers last week as against 49 gainers and 29 losers in the previous week. Japaul Oil & Maritime Services led the gainers, in percentage terms, with a gain of 22.5 per cent to close at N38. Equity Assurance followed with a gain of 20 per cent to close at N24. Union Bank of Nigeria rose by 10.7 per cent to close at N6.20 while Okomu Oil Palm appreciated by 10.2 per cent to close at N90.40.

    On the downside, Mutual Benefits Assurance led the losers with a drop of 13.9 per cent to close at 31 kobo. AG Leventis Nigeria dropped by 7.6 per cent to close at 49 kobo. Nigerian Breweries lost 5.98 per cent to close at N110 while Berger Paints declined by 5.0 per cent to close at N8.55.

    “Following two days of successive losses in the market, we expect a rebound in the coming week as investors seek for bargain hunting opportunities,” Afrinvest Securities stated in a weekend note on the outlook of the market.