<< Back             Poser >> Equities market loses N1.23trn as profit-taking persists The equities market extended its bearish trend on Friday, shedding N1.226 trillion as investors recorded losses in major stocks. Market capitalisation declined by 0.76 per cent to close at N160.443 trillion, compared with N161.669 trillion on Thursday. Similarly, the All-Share Index dropped by 1,912.19 points, or 0.76 per cent, to close at 250,330.92 against 252,243.11 recorded previously. Consequently, the year-to-date return moderated to 60.87 per cent. The downturn was driven by losses in stocks including Zichis Agro Allied Industries, FTN Cocoa Processors Plc, The Initiates Plc, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank Plc and International Energy Insurance Plc. The market breadth remained positive with 47 gainers and 28 losersb in spite of  the negative performance May & Baker Nigeria Plc and ABC Transport Plc led the gainers’ chart with 10 per cent each, closing at N47.30 and N6.27 per share, respectively. Also, SCOA Nigeria Plc gained 9.98 per cent to close at N33.05, while Trans-Nationwide Express Plc rose by 9.97 per cent to N7.06 per share. DAAR Communications Plc also appreciated by 9.76 per cent to close at N2.25 per share. On the losers’ chart, Zichis Agro Allied Industries declined by 9.97 per cent to close at N29.43, while FTN Cocoa Processors lost 9.95 per cent to settle at N8.96 per share. The Initiates Plc dropped by 9.90 per cent to close at N32.30, while LivingTrust Mortgage Bank shed 9.88 per cent to N3.83 per share. International Energy Insurance also dipped by 9.71 per cent to close at N2.79 per share. Meanwhile, market activity improved, with total traded volume rising by 4.28 per cent to 1.08 billion shares worth N44.29 billion exchanged in 65,744 deals. CHAMS Holding Company Plc recorded the highest traded volume with 328.50 million shares, representing 30.30 per cent of total volume traded. Aradel Holdings Plc posted the highest traded value at N9.44 billion, accounting for 21.32 per cent of total value traded. (NAN) Vanguard Business News	NEITI raises alarm over illicit financial flows in solid minerals sector By Obas Esiedesa The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has raised concerns over rising illicit financial flows in Nigeria’s solid minerals sector, warning that weak regulation, illegal mining and opaque ownership structures are undermining the industry’s contribution to the economy. In a policy brief released on Thursday in Abuja titled, “Stemming the Scourge of Illicit […] ELECTRICITY: TCN records 276 tower vandalism in 3 years By Mariam Eko The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, said it recorded about 276 vandalized infrastructure from 2022 to 2025 nationwide. Speaking at the public sensitization on the ills of vandalism of TCN infrastructure held at Itori, Ewekoro, Local government area, Ogun State, the General Manager, TCN, Lagos region, Engr. Adeshina Adeonipekun noted: “I can recall […] Equities market loses N1.23trn as profit-taking persists The equities market extended its bearish trend on Friday, shedding N1.226 trillion as investors recorded losses in major stocks. SEC warns Nigerians against rising Ponzi schemes on social media The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned Nigerians against investing in unregistered online investment schemes being aggressively promoted on social media platforms, cautioning that many of them exhibit characteristics of Ponzi schemes. The warning was contained in a public notice dated May 8, 2026, and published on the Commission’s official communication channels. According to the […] CBN launches FX manual, grants extractive firms full proceeds access The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has launched the 4th Edition of the Foreign Exchange Manual which grants foreign companies in the extractive industry 100 percent unfettered access to their export proceeds. IMF identifies Ghana’s key risks post-$3b loan-supported programme  Ghana on Friday, May 15, exited its $3 billion loan-supported programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), going through three-years of austerity to restore macroeconomic stability, but “the grass is still not green” for the country.