Nigerian stostockscks rose for the third straight day Friday, appreciating 0.17 per cent in the longest gaining streak last seen in more than a month as bank stocks again drove advance.
The climb rested on buy pressure on the shares of Africa’s biggest wireless service provider MTNN and lenders GTB and Zenith.
But a drop in activity by as much as nearly two-thirds this week is a downside investors have to worry about even when the average possible number of shares that could have been traded on Monday, a public holiday, is considered.
Across the five major sectorial indices tracked by the Nigerian Stock Exchange, the banking index progressed the most with a lift of 0.41 per cent to 348.28 basis points.
There 14 gainers and losers apiece, meaning a neutral market breadth was recorded.
The benchmark index rose to 38,866.39 points. Market capitalisation was up by N34.824 billion at N20.335 trillion.
Year to date, the index is down by 3.61 per cent.
TOP FIVE GAINERS
Honeywell led gainers, upping by 8.85 per cent to N1.23. Sovereign Insurance grew by 8.70 per cent to end today’s trade at N0.25. Japaul Gold went up by 8.62 per cent to N0.63.
Livestock rose to N1.93, notching up 7.22 per cent in the process. FCMB completed the top 5, climbing up by 6.57 per cent to N2.92.
TOP FIVE LOSERS
Guinness shed 10 per cent to close at N29.7. Unity Bank shed 9.86 per cent to end today’s trade at N0.64. ABC Transport fell to N0.3, losing 9.09 per cent in the process.
Mutual Benefits eased to N0.39, recording 7.14 per cent slide. UACN Property closed at N0.75, going down by 6.25 per cent.
TOP FIVE TRADES
Shares totalling 160.650 million with a value of N1.281 billion were traded in 3,507 deals.
Mutual Benefits was the most active stock with 22.910 million of its stocks worth N8.955 million traded in 47 deals.
Access Bank shares of 18.754 million units priced at N150.801 million exchanged hands in 283 transactions. Japaul had 14.930 million shares valued at N8.608 million traded in 118 deals.
GTB traded 9.228 million shares estimated at N266.893 million in 325 transactions. Transcorp traded 8.266 million shares valued at N6.540 million in 84 deals.
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