The Nigerian equities market closed the trading session in negative territory as sell pressure on GTCO, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals and BUA Cement pulled the benchmark index lower and wiped approximately ₦470 billion from investors’ market value.
The Nigerian Exchange Limited All-Share Index (NGX ASI) declined by 0.29 per cent to settle at 251,913.20 points, reflecting weaker sentiment across several major counters.
Market capitalisation similarly declined by 0.29 per cent to close at ₦163.53 trillion.
The decline moderated the market’s year-to-date return to 61.88 per cent, compared with 62.35 per cent recorded in the previous trading session.
Despite the day’s retreat, the year-to-date figure indicates that the Nigerian equities market remains substantially above its level at the beginning of 2026.
GTCO, Neimeth, BUA Cement Weigh on Market
The session’s decline was driven by losses recorded in several equities with enough market influence to offset gains elsewhere.
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) fell by 3.28 per cent, while Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals declined by 6.02 per cent.
BUA Cement also lost 3.10 per cent during the session.
The declines outweighed positive performances in Wema Bank, AIICO Insurance and Computer Warehouse Group (CWG).
Wema Bank gained 2.99 per cent, AIICO appreciated by 3.95 per cent, while CWG advanced by 6.96 per cent.
The contrasting movements show that buying interest remained present in selected stocks even as the broader market finished lower.
Trading Volume Drops 45.92%
Beyond the decline in the benchmark index, overall market activity weakened considerably.
Investors traded 548.67 million shares during the session, representing a 45.92 per cent decline in total trading volume.
The value of transactions also fell by 12.09 per cent to ₦34.30 billion.
The simultaneous decline in both volume and transaction value points to reduced trading activity compared with the preceding session.
GTCO dominated both measures of market activity.
The financial services group recorded the session’s highest trading volume, with 88.73 million shares changing hands.
It also accounted for the largest transaction value at ₦11.73 billion.
Based on the supplied figures, GTCO alone represented more than one-third of the total value of equities traded during the session, underscoring the stock’s significance to overall market activity.
33 Stocks Decline as Market Breadth Turns Negative
Market breadth ended negative at 0.85x, indicating that declining stocks outnumbered advancing equities.
A total of 33 stocks closed lower, compared with 28 gainers.
Sovereign Trust Insurance (SOVRENINS) recorded the steepest decline, shedding 9.92 per cent to lead the losers’ chart.
At the opposite end of the market, NPF Microfinance Bank (NPFMCRFBK) gained 10 per cent to emerge as the session’s best-performing stock.
The negative breadth indicates that the market’s weakness was not confined entirely to a small number of heavyweight stocks, with more equities declining than advancing during the session.
However, the extent to which individual heavyweight stocks affect the NGX ASI means losses in major counters such as GTCO and BUA Cement can have a significant impact on the overall index.
NASD Market Records Sharp Decline
The bearish sentiment also extended to Nigeria’s unlisted securities market, where the NASD OTC Securities Exchange recorded a considerably steeper decline.
According to the supplied market figures for Monday, September 28, 2026, the NASD Security Index declined by 7.27 per cent to 4,090.59 points.
Market capitalisation dropped by 7.17 per cent to ₦2.46 trillion.
The sharp decline also reduced the NASD market’s year-to-date return to 15.43 per cent, compared with 24.48 per cent previously.
The NASD figures show a substantially larger percentage decline than that recorded on the NGX, although the two markets differ considerably in size, liquidity and securities traded.
Overall, the latest performance leaves investors watching whether the NGX can regain positive momentum in subsequent sessions, particularly after trading activity weakened and market breadth moved further into negative territory.
