SAT, 19 NOV, 2022-theGBJournal| A total turnover of 694.376 million shares worth N8.667 billion in 15,418 deals was traded this week by investors on the floor of the NGX Exchange, in contrast to a total of 1.101 billion shares valued at N11.714 billion that exchanged hands last week in 15,697 deals, according to NGX Exchange data.
Trading in the top three equities namely Access Holdings Plc, Transnational Corporation Plc and Fidelity Bank Plc (measured by volume) accounted for 232.923 million shares worth N1.237 billion in 1,316 deals, contributing 33.54% and 14.27% to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
Overall, the All-Share Index ended the week 1.2% higher, settling at 44,492.73 points despite pressure from profit-taking activities during the week.
All other indices finished higher with the exception of NGX Insurance, NGX Consumer Goods, NGX Oil & Gas, NGX Lotus II and NGX Industrial Good, which depreciated by 1.34%, 1.05%, 0.84%, 0.19% and 0.66% respectively, while the NGX ASeM, NGX Growth and NGX Sovereign Bond indices closed flat.
Bargain buying in GTCO (+10.8%), NB (+10.3%), STANBIC (+9.1%), ZENITHBANK (+7.0%) and MTNN (+2.6%) amid sell-offs of GUINNESS (-19.0%), WAPCO (-5.6%) and DANGSUGAR (-2.8%) stocks drove the weekly gain. Based on the preceding, the MTD and YTD returns increased to +1.5% and +4.2%, respectively.
However, activity levels were weak, as trading volume and value declined by 37.6% w/w and 26.2% w/w, respectively. Performance across sectors was mixed, following gains in the Banking (+4.2%), Insurance (+0.9%), and Consumer Goods (+0.9%) indices, while the Oil & Gas (-1.3%) and Industrial Goods (-0.4%) indices declined.
In the week ahead, we believe investors will focus on the outcome of the MPC meeting scheduled to hold next week to gain further clarity on the movement of yields in the FI market. As a result, we envisage a cautious trading theme, especially from domestic investors. Notwithstanding, we reiterate the need for positioning only fundamentally sound stocks as the weak macro environment remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings.
Meanwhile, the global equities market settled lower as the Fed’s stance on subsequent rate hikes dampened investors’ sentiments and reignited concerns over a Fed-induced recession.
Accordingly, US (DJIA: -0.6% and S&P 500: -1.2%) stocks pared back gains as investors weighed hawkish signals from the Federal Reserve.
Likewise, European equities (STOXX Europe: -0.9% and FTSE 100: +0.4%) posted mixed performances as investors assessed the rising political tensions over a missile strike on Poland, UK fiscal policy announcement and latest UK inflation data.
Likewise, mixed sentiments dominated Asian markets — Japanese equities (Nikkei 225: -1.3%) mirrored Wall Street’s slump as investors dumped riskier assets on recession worries, while the Chinese market (SSE: +0.3%) traded positively as risk sentiments were buoyed by signs of China’s COVID-19 policy pivot and stimulus measures in China’s property sector.
Similarly, the Emerging (MSCI EM: +0.7%) and Frontier (MSCI FM: +2.2%) markets stocks closed higher, following positive sentiments in China (+0.3%) and Vietnam (+0.7%), respectively.
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