pannigeriannews 
The Nigerian stock market extended its bullish run for an 11th consecutive session on Thursday, as increased buying interest and bargain hunting pushed key market indicators up by 0.38 per cent.
The positive performance translated to a N623 billion increase in market capitalisation, which rose from N163.056 trillion on Wednesday to N163.679 trillion at the close of trading.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the All-Share Index also gained 958.99 points, representing a 0.38 per cent increase, to close at 252,150.01.
The gains were driven largely by buying interest in medium and large-capitalised stocks, including Critical Minerals Financing Corp, RT Briscoe, Caverton Offshore Support Group, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company, Linkage Assurance and 23 other stocks.
With the latest performance, the market’s Year-to-Date return strengthened to 62.04 per cent, while market breadth remained positive, with 28 stocks recording gains against 24 losers.
Critical Minerals Financing Corp led the gainers’ chart, rising by 10 per cent to close at N2.97 per share. RT Briscoe followed with a 9.55 per cent gain to N9.75, while Caverton Offshore Support Group appreciated by 8.75 per cent to N4.35.
Nigerian Aviation Handling Company gained 8.57 per cent to close at N152, while Linkage Assurance rose by 7.36 per cent to N1.75 per share.
On the losing side, Neimeth International Pharmaceutical led with a 7.23 per cent decline to N7.70 per share. Ellah Lakes fell by 5.33 per cent to N8, while Mutual Benefits Assurance declined by 4.65 per cent to N3.28.
Lasaco Assurance also shed 4.44 per cent to close at N1.72, while Wema Bank dropped by 3.93 per cent to N30.55 per share.
Market activity, however, recorded a mixed performance, with traded value increasing despite declines in volume and number of deals.
A total of 978.29 million shares worth N50.16 billion changed hands in 48,558 transactions, compared with 1.59 billion shares valued at N45.82 billion traded in 49,836 deals on Wednesday.
Fidelity Bank dominated trading volume with 335.20 million shares, accounting for 34.26 per cent of the total volume, while Seplat Energy recorded the highest traded value at N13.40 billion, representing 26.71 per cent of the day’s total.
About The Author
