The ASI rose by the most in two weeks (+1.04%) on thin trading as a last minute rally in index heavyweight Dangcem(+3.69%) barely disguised the lackluster mood in the broader market. Activities slumped to its lowest level since the introduction of NAFEX in April with investors trading a meagre N1.1bn ($3m), 74 % below this year’s daily average of N4.4bn ($12m). Banking stocks traded mixed – Guaranty(+0.42%) and Zenith(+0.36%) rose on bargain hunting while UBA(-2.86%) and Stanbic(-1.25%) dropped on risk aversion. Other notable movers include Nestle(-0.32%) which dropped on weak demand and Wapco(+1.15%) which rose on bargain hunting.
Today’s gain lifted the index ytd return to +31.01%, we expect the market to find support in coming sessions.
