The Nigerian equities market closed the third week of June on a bearish note, extending its losing streak to six consecutive trading sessions as sustained profit-taking in large- and mid-cap stocks continued to weigh on investor sentiment.
Trading data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed that the All-Share Index (ASI) declined by 0.62% to close at 235,941.27 points, down from 237,404.92 points recorded in the previous session.
As a result, market capitalisation fell by N938.75 billion to N151.33 trillion from N152.27 trillion recorded on Thursday, while the market’s year-to-date return moderated further to 51.62%.
Market breadth remained negative, with 31 decliners outweighing 21 gainers, reflecting the cautious mood among investors despite pockets of bargain hunting in selected counters.
What the data is saying:
Investor sentiment remained weak throughout Friday’s session as selloffs in several fundamentally strong banking, industrial and consumer stocks offset gains recorded in a handful of medium-cap counters.
Highlights of Friday’s trading outcome:
- All-Share Index: 235,941.27 points, down 0.62%
- Market Capitalisation: N151.33 trillion, down N938.75 billion
- Volume Traded: 440.36 million shares, down 36.33%
- Value Traded: N24.68 billion, down 78.88%
- Deals: 50,273 transactions, up 0.50%
- Year-to-Date Return: 51.62%
- Market Breadth: 21 gainers against 31 losers
Top 5 Gainers:
- DEAP Capital Management & Trust (DEAPCAP) — up 9.89% to N4.89
- RT Briscoe (RTBRISCOE) — up 9.62% to N13.10
- International Energy Insurance (INTENEGINS) — up 7.43% to N5.06
- Jaiz Bank (JAIZBANK) — up 7.14% to N9.00
- LivingTrust Mortgage Bank (LIVINGTRUST) — up 5.26% to N4.00
Top 5 Losers:
- Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) — down 10.00% to N148.50
- Royal Exchange (ROYALEX) — down 10.00% to N1.53
- GTCO — down 9.97% to N115.55
- First HoldCo (FIRSTHOLDCO) — down 9.84% to N55.00
- Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals (NEIMETH) — down 9.60% to N8.95
More insights:
Friday’s trading session was dominated by sustained profit-taking across several bellwether stocks, extending the correction that has persisted throughout the week.
Among the stocks that weighed heavily on market performance were the FUGAZ banks and four others, including:
- NAHCO (-10.00%)
- GTCO (-9.97%)
- FIRSTHOLDCO (-9.84%)
- ZENITHBANK (-4.76%)
- WAPCO (-4.52%)
- UBA (-2.23%)
- ACCESSCORP (-0.87%)
- DANGSUGAR (-0.40%), and
- NGXGROUP (-0.16%)
The negative market breadth further underscored the cautious sentiment among investors, with sellers maintaining the upper hand despite gains in DEAPCAP, RTBRISCOE, JAIZBANK and other advancing stocks.
Market turnover:
Market activity also slowed significantly compared with the previous session.
Total volume traded declined by 36.33% to 440.36 million shares
Transaction value plunged by 78.88% to N24.68 billion, after Thursday’s heavy turnover.
- ACCESSCORP emerged as the most actively traded stock by volume, accounting for 64.97 million shares or 14.75% of total market volume.
- MTNN led the value chart with transactions worth N4.64 billion, representing 18.78% of total traded value.
- ZENITHBANK and STERLINGNG accounted for 7.99% and 6.46% of total volume respectively, while ZENITHBANK and ARADEL followed MTNN among the highest-value traded counters.
What you should know:
Friday’s N938.75 billion loss marks the sixth consecutive trading session of decline on the Nigerian Exchange, highlighting the persistence of the current market correction after months of strong gains.
- Investors lost N938.75 billion in a single day as market capitalisation declined from N152.27 trillion on Thursday to N151.33 trillion on Friday, representing a 0.62% drop.
- On a week-on-week basis, the market shed N5.64 trillion in value, with market capitalisation falling from N156.97 trillion recorded at the close of trading on June 11 to N151.33 trillion on June 19.
- This represents a decline of approximately 3.59%.
- The benchmark index has now retreated further from its all-time high of 252,508 points reached in May 2026.
Despite the ongoing correction, the NGX has still returned 51.62% year-to-date, making it one of the better-performing equity markets globally in 2026.
Analysts expect market sentiment to remain cautious in the near term as investors continue to rebalance portfolios, although attractive valuations in selected fundamentally strong stocks may encourage bargain hunting and provide intermittent support for the market.
