Stock Market Gains 0.18%

Bullish sentiments persisted in the domestic equities market, following sustained interest in large cap stocks.On Wednesday, the All- Share- Index gained 48.23 absolute points or 0.18 per cent to close at 27,437.25 points. Similarly, the market capitalisation gained N17 billion to close at N9.423trillion. The performance further cut the year-to-date losses to 4.38 per cent.Analysts said that the rally seen could be attributed to Guaranty Trust Bank half year, 2016 results with interim dividend pronouncement of 25 kobo per share.According to them, GTBank result pronouncement and some positive outlook on some large cap stocks helped sustain the market through a third-day uptrend in a row.They also noted that with the high volume and market breadth, the market for today may continue with its uptrend.Market breadth was positive, with 22 gainers versus 17 losers. ETI recorded the highest price gain of 8.71 per cent, to close at N11.48 per share. Eterna and NPF Microfinance Bank gained 4.17 per cent each to close at N2.50 and N1 per share, respectively.Airservice went up by 3.29 per cent to close at N2.20, while Continental Reinsurance appreciated by 3 per cent to close at N1.03 per share.On the other hand, CCNN led the losers chart by 8.94 per cent, to close at N6.01 per share. International Breweries and Ikeja Hotel shed 5 per cent each to close at N19 and N1.71 per share, respectively.Wema Bank down by 4.29 per cent to closed at 67 kobo and Livestock went down by 4.21 per cent to close at 91 kobo per share.Total volume traded appreciated by 26.11 per cent to 297.48 million shares, worth N2.29 billion, and traded in 3,438 deals.Transactions in the shares of Access Bank topped the activity chart 65.99 million shares worth N363.27 million. United Bank for Africa followed with account of 57.06 million shares valued at N248.34 million, while Guaranty Trust Bank traded 32.28 million shares.
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