Airtel, Dangote Cement Boost NGX Index, investors gain N3.45trn

Airtel Africa and Dangote Cement Plc rallies drove a N3.45 trillion gain on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX); investors continue to take positions ahead of second quarter earnings releases.

The local bourse closed trading on a positive note, with key market performance indicators advancing further by 2.27%.  The gain was mainly supported by buying interest in AIRTELAFRI (+10.00%), ARADEL (+8.68%), DANGCEM (+3.15%), and FIDELITYBK (+9.97%).

The market recorded buying actions in VITAFOAM, MTNN, ACCESSCORP, and FCMB, boosting the NGX key performance indicators.

The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) added 5,376.70 points in today’s trading session, closing at 242,459.98. Also, market capitalisation gained ₦3,450.21 billion, to close at ₦155.59 trillion.

Total volume of all trades executed in the market increased by 5.02%, while total value traded declined by 18.80%. In a note, Atlass Portfolio Limited told investors that approximately 518.43 million units valued at ₦22,752.87 million were transacted across 48,495 deals.

LASACO drove volume, accounting for 10.94% of all trading units in the market, followed by FIDELITYBK (9.18%), LINKASSURE (6.56%), ZENITHBANK (6.18%), and STERLINGNG (5.89%).

ARADEL topped the value chart, accounting for 18.51% of the total value of all trades executed on the local bourse, making it the most actively traded on the exchange.

TRANSEXPR and AIRTELAFRI led by generating +10.00% each, then trailed by FIDELITYBK (+9.97%), THOMASWY (+9.89%), ZICHIS (+9.69%), RTBRISCOE (+9.39%), ROYALEX (+9.35%), and twenty-five others.

A total of twenty-three stock depreciated. With a price  depreciation of -9.95%, HMCALL topped the worst performers’ chart, followed by MCNICHOLS (-8.89%), TRANSCORP (-5.65%), CWG (-5.24%), VFDGROUP (-5.19%), and NPFMCRFBK (-4.59%).

Hence, market breadth closed on a positive note, with 32 gainers and 23 losers. Sectoral performance was positive today, with four of the five major market sectors advancing.

The Oil & Gas sector led by +3.85%, followed by the Industrial Goods sector (+1.89%), the Banking sector (+1.07%), and the Consumer Goods sector (+0.31%).

Only the Insurance sector declined by -0.20%. Over the three trading sessions so far this week, investors’ wealth has risen by a cumulative of over ₦8.4 trillion.