16 July 2018 ( Lagos ) : The equity sector has already lost N 320 bn so far in losses in the first two weeks of H2'18 and again it starts the third week on a negative note, by closing under- main culprit seems to be the Banking sector yet again. With giants like (
ZENITHBANK ) losing 0.21%, and (
GUARANTY ) shedding 0.75%, the equity market faced a major brunt. The other banks also led laggards, with (
STERLNBANK ), (
UBA ), (
ACCESS ) and (
FCMB ) declining by 2.05%, 0.5%, 0.98% and 2.35%. (
UNITYBNK ) that was continuously on the rise till about a week back, with a ytd of 108%, has observed a steady decline
In the consumer goods sector, where (
FLOURMILL ) saw an increase of 3.1% and (
UACN ) surged by 5.26% ; (
GUINNESS ) saw a decline of 0.51%. (
PZ ) also went down by 10%, mainly due to their weak income levels and the recent rise in Brent crude is expected to add fuel to the pressure on the petrochemical prices. Consequently, a bearish sentiment prevailed on the sector.
In the oil and gas sector, there were dips in (
OANDO ) by 9.37%, (
JAPAULOIL ) by 3.12% and (
FO ) by 6.57%.
Lastly, in the insurance industry, (
SOVRENINS ) and (
LASACO ) both increased by 8.7% and 5.8% respectively. The increase helped them come out of their 52-week lows.
The market cap has already dipped by 2.3% so far, so it looks like the Bears have come with their tents and are here to stay, which is mainly due to the political uncertainties, which is causing the investors to be extremely catious.. But, there are some factors that could drive the market- more listings, proper implementation of the budget, sustained liquidity in forex exchange.
Reporting for EasyKobo on Monday, 16 July 2018 in Lagos, Nigeria