Stock market sees slight dip amid sell pressure

Nigeria’s equities market on Tuesday failed to sustain preceding day’s gain amid increased pressure on the sell-side of the Bourse.

The nation’s stock market decreased slightly by 0.03percent at the close of trading, no thanks to investors who offered for sale stocks like UPDC, NEM and AXA Mansard.

The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) All Share Index (ASI) decreased to 43,255.14 points from preceding day’s high of 43,260.13 points.

Vetiva Securities anticipate further mixed trading activity on Wednesday session with a slightly bearish close, “as investors continue to trade cautiously whilst cherry-picking attractive counters across board”.

UPDC led the laggards’ league after its share price decreased from N1.39 to N1.26, down by 13kobo or 9.35percent.

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NEM decreased from N2.05 to N1.86, down by 19kobo or 9.27percent, while AXA Mansard dropped from N2.35 to N2.23, shedding 12kobo or 5.11percent.

GTCO, FBNH, Zenith Bank, Access Bank and Honeywell Flour Mills shares were most traded counters on Tuesday at the Nigerian Exchange Limited. In 4,158 deals, investor exchanged 217,972,819 units valued at N2.907billion.

At the end of the two-day monetary policy meeting, the committee members voted to hold all parameters stable. The MPC decision was made in light of the Nigerian economy’s continued GDP growth in third quarter (Q3) of 2021, moderating inflationary pressures, surge in oil prices, and improvement in vaccination levels.

Specifically, the committee decided to: Retain Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 11.5percent; Maintain the asymmetric corridor around the MPR at +100/-700bps; Retain the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 27.5percent; and Retain liquidity ratio at 30percent.