Despite trading higher for most part of the day, the equities market closed -0.20% lower as late selling in index heavyweight – Dangcem overshadowed risk-on sentiment in the broader market. Dangcem(-3.04%) fell to a 2-month low on light volumes. Market breadth was however impressive as over (3) stocks appreciated for every decliner. Similar to yesterday, tier II banks topped the gainers chart with Diamond(+9.55%), FCMB(+9.49%) and Fidelity(+8.53%) closing on bid. A mix of thin liquidity and decent demand helped lift tier I banks such as UBA(+3.46%), Guaranty(+0.62%) and Zenith(+0.35%). Consumer stocks traded apart – Dangsugar(+7.42%) closed near a 9-year high on strong domestic demand and Dangflour(+4.94%) closed on bid while Cadbury(-4.17%) and Unilever(-0.87%) dropped on weak demand.
Market turnover closed low at N2.1bn ($5.8m) with domestic investors dominating activities. Today’s -0.20% loss pushed ytd return to -0.14%, we expect the market to rebound in coming sessions on bargain hunting in large caps.
