The Nigerian stock market slipped into the red on Wednesday, wiping off ₦324 billion in investors’ wealth after a wave of sell-offs hit the market.

Data from the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) shows that the market capitalisation, which opened at ₦89.696 trillion, declined by 0.36% to close at ₦89.372 trillion. Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) fell by 512.60 points to settle at 141,248.76, compared to 141,761.36 recorded the previous day.

The downturn was largely driven by price losses in key stocks such as Cornerstone Insurance, RT Briscoe, ABC Transport, NGX Group, and Mutual Benefits, among others. In total, 40 stocks closed negative, against 17 gainers, reflecting weak market sentiment.

On the flip side, Deep Capital Management and Legend Internet defied the bearish pressure, bouncing back from Tuesday’s losses to top the gainers’ chart.

Despite the decline in value, trading activity picked up with higher volume and worth of shares exchanged. Investors traded 682.9 million shares valued at ₦22.2 billion across 28,695 deals, compared to 605.02 million shares worth ₦12.89 billion exchanged in 28,845 deals on Tuesday.

FCMB Group continued to dominate trading, leading the activity chart with 108.5 million shares worth ₦1.19 billion, marking its third straight day as the most active stock.

Market watchers say the bearish performance reflects cautious investor sentiment, even as bargain hunters may see opportunities in the coming sessions.