The Nigerian equities market fell by 3.51 per cent last week following continuing bearish trading brought by the COVID-19 on global stock markets. Sell pressure on bellwethers amidst rising cases of coronavirus made the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (ASI) to close lower at 21,094.62, from 21,861.78 the previous week.

Similarly, the market capitalisation shed N399.8 billion to close lower at N10.994 trillion. All other indices finished lower with the exception of NSE Oil/Gas which appreciated by 2.33 per cent while NSE ASeM Index closed flat.

Analysts at Cordros Securities believe the bearish trend would persist this week, as weakened market sentiments are expected to pressure market returns. They, however, advised investors to take a position in fundamentally justified stocks.

A look at markets across Africa showed same negative performance except Kenya that gained 5.0 per cent and Mauriius that closed flat. Egypt’s EGX 30 index lost the most, down 4.6 per cent as monetary authorities held rates steady at 10.25 per cent.

Morocco’s Casablanca MASI while Ghana’s GSE Composite index shed 0.8 per cent.

The BRICS markets also recorded a mixed performances with Brazil’s Ibovespa index was the lone loser, shedding 6.8 per cent. Russia’s RTS and South Africa’s FTSE/JSE All Share indices gained 9.9 per cent and 3.8 per cent in that order as investors reacted to oil price recovery. India’s BSE Sens and China’s Shanghai Composite indices posted flat returns.

But performance across some of the Asian and Middle East markets was bullish as three of five indices trended northward. Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul ASI rose 6.7 per cent as investors positioned for gains following oil price appreciation. Thailand’s SET and Turkey’s BIST 100 index gained 3.6 per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively.

On the negative side, Qatar’s DSM 220 and UAE’s ADX General indices declined 0.2 per cent and 0.3 per cent in that order.

According to Afrinvest (West Africa), performance in the developed markets was largely bearish across indices under their coverage. The United States S&P 500 and NASDAQ indices declined 2.4 per cent and 2.0 per cent respectively despite the government’s economic stimulus. France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s XETRA DAX indices lost 4.5 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively. Similarly, United Kingdom’s FTSE All-Share Index declined 2.1 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng indices closed flat.