The Nigerian stock market resumed trading on Monday in red to halt the seven consecutive days gaining sessions due to profit taking.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the market capitalisation dipped N80 billion or 0.38 per cent to close at N21.215 trillion from N21.295 trillion achieved.

Also, the All-Share Index which opened at 40,868.36 lost 154.36 points or 0.38 per cent to close at 40,714.00.

Accordingly, the month-to-date and year-to-date returns moderated to 1.2 per cent and 1.1 per cent, respectively.

The negative downturn was due to sell-off sentiments in majorly consumer goods and industrial sectors.

The market loss was driven by price depreciation in large and medium capitalised stocks amongst which are; Nigerian Breweries, BUA Cement, Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) and Guinness.

However, the market breadth closed at par with 17 gainers and 17 losers.

Sovereign Trust Insurance led the losers’ chart in percentage terms by 8.33 per cent to close at 22k per share.

Nigerian Breweries followed with 6.06 per cent to close at N46.50, while AIICO Insurance dipped 5.26 per cent to close at 90k per share.

University Press lost 5.06 per cent to close at N1.50, while Universal Insurance shed 4.55 per cent to close at 21k per share.

Conversely, NEM Insurance dominated the gainers’ chart with 9.95 per cent to close at N2.10 per share.

Champion Breweries and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) followed with a gain 9.52 per cent each to close at N2.30 and N6.90 per share, respectively.

Royal Exchange rose by 8.77 per cent to close at 62k, while Lafarge Africa gained 4.93 per cent to close at N24.50 per share.

The total volume of trades decreased by 42.21 per cent with an exchange of 191.31 million shares valued at N2.59 billion in 4,395 deals.

This was in contrast with a total 331.06 million shares worth N2.92 billion traded in 3,986 deals on Friday.

Transactions in the shares of FBN Holdings topped the activity chart with 24.15 million shares valued at N234.25 million.

ETI followed with 19.34 million shares worth N130.36 million, while Chams Plc traded 17.69 million shares valued at N4.23 million.

Zenith Bank traded 12.23 million shares valued at N300.71 million, while GTCO transacted 12.10 million shares worth N343.62 million.