Lagos — After five straight green sessions, the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) cooled on Friday: market cap –₦81bn (–0.09%) to ₦88.922tn; ASI –0.09% to 140,545.69. Despite the pullback, breadth stayed positive (32 gainers vs 21 losers) with volumes and value traded rising.
Profit-taking clipped the NGX’s weekly momentum as selloffs in Mutual Benefits Assurance (–7.80%), Lasaco Assurance (–5.97%), Daar Communications (–4.50%), PZ Cussons Nigeria (–3.33%), and NGX Group (–3.30%) dragged the composite lower. Yet under the hood, risk appetite held up: market breadth closed positive and liquidity improved—a sign of rotation, not capitulation.
Turnover accelerated: investors exchanged 434.7m shares valued at ₦16.17bn across 23,729 deals, versus 378.2m shares, ₦12.4bn, and 22,935 deals in the prior session (+15% volume, +30% value, +3% deals). Activity centred on Secure Electronic Technology (71.4m shares; ₦58.7m), Access Corporation (40.9m; ₦1.1bn), Sterling Nigeria (37.1m; ₦279m), Regency Alliance (20.1m; ₦33.4m), and CHAMS (19.4m; ₦62.8m).
On the upside, FG162029S1 topped the gainers’ board (+100% to ₦100), while eTranzact (+9.93% to ₦14.95), Regency Alliance (+9.93% to ₦1.66), Chellaram (+9.92% to ₦13.30), and Industrial & Medical Gases (+9.91% to ₦36.60) printed strong advances.
Signal check: With ASI down just 0.09% after a five-day run and breadth positive, the session reads as tactical profit-taking concentrated in a few weights rather than a risk-off turn. The 30% jump in value traded suggests dip-buyers and rebalancers were active into weakness.
By the Numbers
- Market Cap: ₦88.922tn (from ₦89.003tn) –₦81bn / –0.09%
- ASI: 140,545.69 (from 140,665.85) –0.09%
- Breadth: 32 gainers : 21 losers
- Activity: 434.7m shares | ₦16.17bn | 23,729 deals
- Top Gainers: FG162029S1 (+100%), eTranzact (+9.93%), Regency Alliance (+9.93%), Chellaram (+9.92%), Industrial & Medical Gases (+9.91%)
- Top Laggards: Mutual Benefits (–7.80%), Lasaco (–5.97%), Daar Comm (–4.50%), PZ Cussons (–3.33%), NGX Group (–3.30%)
BRANDECONOMY Take
This looks like rotation, not reversal. Index pressure came from profit-taking in insurance/media and a couple of index-relevant names (consumer, exchange), but liquidity broadened and breadth stayed positive—a constructive mix. If macro prints (inflation path, FX liquidity) don’t deteriorate, pullbacks like this tend to be bought, especially into dividend/corporate-action windows.
Watch-list (near term):
- Banks & large caps: leadership on any rebound; sensitivity to yields and FX prints.
- Insurance cohort: follow-through selling vs bargain bids after outsized moves.
- Liquidity: whether value traded sustains above the day’s ₦16bn handle.
- Flows: local institutional rotation vs retail momentum in mid/small caps.
POSERS:
Why did the index dip if more stocks rose than fell?
A few heavier-weighted decliners can offset broader gains; market-cap weight matters more than count of advancers.
Does the turnover spike mean a trend change?
Not by itself. A higher-value red day with positive breadth often reflects rebalancing rather than a rush to the exits.
What would confirm a deeper pullback?
Successive lower closes with breadth turning negative and value traded shrinking (weak demand) or surging (distribution) across multiple sessions.
