Total transactions in Nigerian equity market fall 36% in April to N346 billion - NGX

Source: Nairametrics
Author: Chris Ugwu

Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) says that the total domestic and foreign portfolio transactions in Nigeria's equity market amounted to N346.23 billion in  April 2024.

This was contained in a statement from the NGX, made available to Nairametrics.

According to the Exchange, as of April 30, 2024, total transactions at the nation's bourse decreased by 35.71% from N538.54 billion (about $404.69 million) in March 2024 to N346.23 billion (about $260.24 million) in April 2024.

The decline may not be unconnected with the prevailing low sentiments among investors, who have exhibited cautious behaviour in light of the persistent volatility in the Nigerian market.

The NGX All-Share Index experienced a significant decline in April, losing N3.57 trillion in market value following policy announcements from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that tended to favour fixed-income securities.

A further analysis of the total transactions executed between April and the prior month (March 2024) revealed that total domestic transactions decreased by 49.27%, from N444.28 billion in March to N225.40 billion in April 2024.

However, total foreign transactions increased by 28.19% from N94.26 billion (about $70.83 million) to N120.83 billion (about $90.83 million) between March 2024 and April 2024.

According to the NGX, institutional investors outperformed retail investors by 10%. A comparison of domestic transactions revealed that retail transactions decreased by 54.89% from N223.37 billion in March to N100.77 billion in April 2024.

Similarly, the institutional composition of the domestic market decreased by 43.58% from N220.91 billion in March 2024 to N124.63 billion in April 2024.

Over a 16-year period, domestic transactions decreased by 10.94% from N3.556trillion in 2007 to N3.167trillion in 2023; whilst foreign transactions also fell by 33.28% from N616billion to N411billion over the same period.

Total domestic transactions accounted for about 89% of the total transactions carried out in 2023, whilst foreign transactions accounted for only 11% of the total transactions in the same period.