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The Nigerian equities market extended its losing streak on Wednesday as sustained profit-taking continued to weigh on overall performance, pushing the market further into negative territory.

At the close of trading, the Nigerian Exchange All-Share Index (NGX ASI) declined by 1.19 percent to settle at 150,812.02 points, trimming the year-to-date return to 46.52 percent. The persistent sell pressure led to a significant erosion in market value, with investors losing approximately N1.15 trillion. Consequently, the total market capitalisation of listed equities fell to N95.82 trillion.

Market sentiment remained weak, reflecting a negative market breadth as 15 stocks advanced while 46 declined.

Top gainers for the day included NCR, Legend International, Cornest, UPDC, and Linkage Assurance, which managed to attract buying interest despite the overall downturn. On the flip side, CandI Leasing, Transcorp, Skyway Aviation, Beta Glass, and RT Briscoe recorded the highest losses, topping the decliners’ chart.

Sectoral performance was broadly negative as profit-taking dominated key sectors. The Banking, Insurance, Oil and Gas, and Commodity indices fell by 0.19 percent, 0.08 percent, 1.02 percent, and 1.16 percent, respectively. However, the Industrial Goods and Consumer Goods sectors offered mild relief, each appreciating by 0.22 percent on renewed interest in select blue-chip stocks.

Despite the bearish close, overall market activity showed signs of improvement. While the number of deals declined by 17.98 percent to 27,303 transactions, total traded volume and value increased by 63.36 percent and 46.16 percent, respectively, to 1.12 billion units and N29.78 billion.

Market analysts attributed the ongoing correction to investors locking in profits following a strong rally in October. They noted that while short-term volatility may persist, bargain hunters are expected to return to the market as attractive entry points emerge, particularly in fundamentally strong large-cap stocks.

They added that the market’s medium-term outlook remains broadly positive, supported by resilient corporate earnings and expectations of continued policy reforms aimed at deepening investor confidence.

Nigeria has reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to inclusive social development and people-centred governance at the Second World Summit for Social Development (WSSD) held in Doha, Qatar.

Delivering the country statement on behalf of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, in a statement issued to newsmen by her Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Mr Jonathan Eze, on Wednesday, declared that Nigeria is implementing transformative policies designed to expand opportunity, reduce poverty, and strengthen national cohesion.

‘Nigeria fully aligns with the statement delivered on behalf of the African Group. Our vision for social development is guided by the Nigeria Agenda 2050 and anchored on the priorities of the Renewed Hope Agenda – focusing on people-centred governance, poverty eradication, human capital development, and inclusive growth,’ the Minister stated.

She highlighted the establishment of Regional Development Ministries and Agencies across all six geopolitical zones to drive balanced territorial development, alongside Ward Development Initiatives aimed at ensuring no community is left behind.

Among the flagship reforms, the Minister announced the institutionalisation of the National Social Investment Programmes through a standalone agency, with millions of Nigerians benefiting from conditional cash transfers, youth employment schemes, school feeding programmes, and enterprise support. These interventions, she said, are ‘triggering multidimensional prosperity anchored on a National Social Register.’

In what she described as a ‘major leap toward efficient service delivery,’ Sulaiman-Ibrahim revealed that Nigeria has launched an enhanced National Digital Identity Portal to promote governance efficiency, social inclusion, and transparency. The initiative, she said, ‘ensures access to public services, ease of travel, and targeted social protection delivery.’

Highlighting youth empowerment as a central pillar of the administration’s vision, the Minister noted that the Nigeria Youth Investment Fund (NYIF) and the Creative Economy Development Fund (CEDF) are unleashing innovation among young Nigerians, particularly women, while boosting investment in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and STEM education.

She further disclosed that the government is adopting a lifespan approach to social development, including the introduction of Universal Child Grants, the establishment of a National Council for Social Work, and the implementation of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities Prohibition Act, 2018, through the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities.

Under the Renewed Hope Social Impact Intervention 774 (RH-SII774), Nigeria aims to empower over 10 million women in five years, strengthen family systems, and institutionalise care structures through comprehensive social workforce reforms.

The Minister emphasised that the government is also scaling investments in primary healthcare, maternal and child health, early education, and clean energy access, while tackling climate change and promoting environmental sustainability.

‘In Nigeria, inclusive social development is not an aspiration but an obligation,’ she declared. ‘It demands shared responsibility, political will, and renewed multilateral cooperation.’

Reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to the Doha Political Declaration and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Sulaiman-Ibrahim called for stronger global solidarity to ensure that ‘every woman, every child, and every family thrives in dignity.’

The Minister concluded by urging nations to uphold social protection as a universal right, and to measure progress not merely by economic growth, but by ‘human resilience, gender equality, and collective well-being.’

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has called for renewed African solidarity and self-determination, stressing that the continent’s future must be shaped by Africans themselves.

Governor Sanwo-Olu made the call through his deputy, Dr Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, during a courtesy visit by the Regional Governor of Ohangwena Region, Republic of Namibia, Kadiva D. Hamutumwa, held at the Official Residence of the Deputy Governor, Osborne Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Sanwo-Olu recalled Nigeria’s role in the early 1980s when students from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and other African countries were educated by the Nigerian government as part of its commitment to African unity.

‘I recall as a young person in the early 1980s when Nigeria hosted students from South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, creating a strong African bond. Our destiny as Africans must be determined by us, not by outsiders, and we must work together, as Europe has done through the European Union,’ he said.

The governor expressed concern that such continental bonds were weakening, calling on African nations to strengthen cooperation for collective progress, even as he noted that greater collaboration across the continent remained vital for economic growth, stability, and development.

Governor Sanwo-Olu, however, assured that the Lagos State government was ready to work with the Ohangwena Region, Republic of Namibia, in key areas such as infrastructure, transportation, and energy, among others, to aid development within the region.

The governor, while highlighting Lagos State’s efforts to address the challenges of rapid urbanisation, emphasised that the state government had continued to invest in transport infrastructure, agriculture, and healthcare.

He added that the state had successfully developed intra-city rail lines, introduced electric ferries to promote cleaner energy, and established maternal and child care centres to improve healthcare delivery and urban management to meet the demands of its expanding population.

He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to innovation and sustainable growth, noting that his government was also building logistics and industrial hubs to ensure food security and economic resilience within the state.

In her remarks, the Governor of Ohangwena Region, Republic of Namibia, Hamutumwa, stated that the team was in Lagos to learn and tap into the knowledge of the state and explore collaboration opportunities to transform Ohangwena into Namibia’s economic hub.

Hamutumwa explained that Lagos’s success in commerce, infrastructure, and innovation presented a valuable model for emerging African regions seeking to drive growth and industrial transformation.

According to her, Ohangwena Region’s goal over the next five years is to become a commercial hub for northern Namibia by focusing on agriculture, logistics, and industrial expansion, given the region’s proximity to Zambia, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Botswana.

She further noted that the region is currently 80 per cent rural and semi-urban, declaring that her vision was to commercialise the region, ‘turn it around, and develop key industries within the region that will not only serve the region itself but also the rest of the country and Africa as a whole.’

‘Our region is well-positioned to serve as a gateway for regional trade within southern Africa, and when I looked at which countries we would collaborate with in order to gain learnings and tap into the knowledge and commerce within those countries, Nigeria was the first country I identified to visit. So the first stop is Lagos, as the state is the commercial hub of Nigeria,’ she said.

The Edo State Government has said that it has recovered over 500 government-owned properties from individuals who unlawfully took over such properties across the state.

The government added that such encroachers into Edo State-owned property are in for a rough ride, as the state government has enacted a law prescribing a 10-year jail term for anyone who unlawfully enters any government land, with Governor Monday Okpebholo assenting to the bill passed by the state House of Assembly.

Violators of the provisions of the new law will also have a speedy session with the court, as a special court for their prosecution has been approved to try such infractions.

Making the disclosure in Benin on Wednesday at a press conference, the Chairman of the Edo State Public Property Protection Committee, Mr Eugene Okoloise, vowed that the Committee would implement the spirit and letter of the new law, as no sacred cow would be spared in its enforcement.

Okoloise, who said that his Committee had recovered over 500 state-owned properties from encroachers since he took office, assured that he was determined to ensure that all government properties in the hands of individuals were recovered.

He warned that no one would be treated as a sacred cow in his bid to recover government properties, adding that ignorance would not be accepted as an excuse for breaking the law.

‘Before now, there was no law empowering us to prosecute offenders. But now that the governor has signed this law, there is no excuse. Anyone caught will be prosecuted in accordance with the law. To this effect, the government has set up a special court to prosecute anyone who sells or encroaches on government property.

‘And I want to assure Edo people that anyone caught shall be prosecuted in accordance with the law, no matter how highly placed. We are not going to spare anyone or treat anyone specially because of his or her status.’

He disclosed that to make the law known to the public, his Committee had begun enlightenment through media houses and a community-to-community awareness campaign.

‘We are going to sensitise the general public, including rural dwellers, that there is a new law to prosecute anyone who forcefully enters government property.

‘I have plans to go round media houses to sensitise our people. Briefing you on the new law is part of the enlightenment campaign,’ Okoloise reiterated.

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has urged the Federal Government to take decisive steps to counter what he described as a ‘false narrative’ of a Christian genocide in Nigeria, warning that the country’s silence is fuelling misinformation abroad.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Falana said the campaign alleging systematic killings of Christians has been ongoing for years without any official rebuttal.

‘According to Professor Jibrin Ibrahim, a respected intellectual, this campaign of Christian genocide in Nigeria has been prosecuted for eight years without any challenge from the government,’ Falana said. ‘People go to the United States, come back and continue spreading this narrative without any response from our officials.’

The Senior Advocate said rather than reacting emotionally to recent remarks by former U.S. President Donald Trump, the Nigerian government should address internal failings that have allowed such perceptions to grow.

‘Instead of losing sleep over Mr. Trump’s comments, we must ask ourselves where we made errors. Someone must be honest,’ he stated.

Falana argued that those perpetrating violence in parts of the country are not motivated by religion but by economic interests tied to land and livestock.

‘Those who are killing are not doing so because of religion,’ he said. ‘They are killing to expand land, to graze their animals. This problem persists because we still allow open grazing, even though both the Southern and Northern Governors’ Forums agreed that open grazing should be banned.’

He faulted the government for failing to enforce the agreement, noting that open grazing continues even in the nation’s capital.

‘On my way to Abuja yesterday, I saw cattle on the airport road. Nigeria is the only country in the world where that happens. You even find them grazing along the National Assembly road,’ he said.

Falana maintained that ranching remains the best solution to the farmer-herder crisis but accused the government and herders’ associations of frustrating its implementation.

‘In modern societies, you have enclosed ranches where grass and water are provided. Even the children of herders can go to school there. Why then do members of Miyetti Allah and the government refuse to establish ranches across the country?’ he asked.

The rights lawyer also decried the rising cases of kidnapping and the authorities’ failure to use technology to trace perpetrators.

‘How can you have a modern state that allows bandits to kill citizens without any attempt to identify or locate them?’ Falana asked.

‘Today, technology has advanced to the extent that wherever a phone call is made, it can be traced. Yet, families of kidnapped victims are left to raise ransom money instead of security agencies tracking the criminals.’

He said the continued payment of ransom only makes kidnapping more profitable.

‘Once the victims’ families are contacted, the police should swing into action – not wait for ransom collection. Otherwise, kidnapping becomes a lucrative business, and that is why we are in trouble,’ he warned.

Falana concluded by urging the Nigerian government to defend the country’s sovereignty and reputation in the face of international criticism.

‘We have brought this embarrassment upon ourselves as a people. We are being treated like a colony of the United States. We cannot even challenge Mr. Trump – how dare you? Where is this hypocrisy coming from?’ he asked.