Stakeholders in the capital market have expressed doubt over the possibility of a speedy recovery of equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.The stakeholders view was informed by the continued fall in the All Share Index and the market capitalisation of the Exchange, which have persisted for months.Experts, who spoke with our correspondent on Thursday, noted that the reforms undertaken by the Central Bank of Nigeria had impacted negatively on the market, adding that the development had made both local and foreign investors to lose confidence in the market.The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Atlass Portfolios Limited, Mr. Ubale Yahaya, aligned with this view, stressing that if at all it would be, it might be in the coming year.He said, I dont see the market picking up this year. In fact, what we should look forward to now is for activities to gather momentum next year, when investors, among other things, would have been able to adjust to the high Monetary Policy Rate introduced by the CBN.The Monetary Policy Committee of the apex bank, had after its emergency meeting on October 10, raised benchmark interest rate by 275 basis points to 12 per cent from 9.25 per cent, making it the sixth time it had increased MPR since the beginning of this year.Stakeholders had earlier described the development as an unhealthy one for the capital market and the manufacturing sector of the economy.The CBN had done a lot of damage to the capital market because a lot of investors are no longer interested in the market. Rather, they would prefer to watch and see how activities would thrive from afar, Yahaya said.He also noted that the recent holidays and the impending ones might also slow down the recovery of the market, adding that investors interests were now channeled to the money market.Of course the repeated fall in equities was even before the recent holidays, and it continued after. Considering the fact that we are entering a season of more holidays, I see the market only picking up next year, he said.Speaking also on the development, an analyst with BGL Group, Mr. Femi Ademola, said the banking crisis affected the markets, noting market recovery might not be imminent.He, however, advised investors to take advantage of the lowly priced stocks of some quoted companies on the Exchange to make investment, adding that market activities would bounce back when the financial sector stabilised.He said, People are afraid to invest now and it is not their faults. The MPR hike by the CBN did a lot of damage, but I believe that in a couple of months the market will find its rhythm and activities will become attractive.However, shrewd investors should invest now and not relent, because no one can tell when the stocks of a particular firm will appreciate in price, making good returns for the investors.
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