Trading activity on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) staged a dramatic rebound at the close of Thursday’s session, with turnover surging by 209% as investors traded more than 3.55 million shares valued at GH¢22.55 million.
The sharp increase in market activity came a day after relatively subdued trading on Wednesday, September 23. Compared with the previous session, trading volume improved by 133%, while the value of transactions more than tripled, highlighting a significant jump in investor participation and market activity.
Despite the stronger trading flows, the broader market did not advance. The GSE Composite Index declined by 71.69 points, equivalent to 0.5%, to close at 14,215.45 points.
Turnover Explodes As Trading Activity Rebounds
A total of 3,552,994 shares changed hands during the session, generating a market value of GH¢22,551,966.33.
The scale of the improvement was particularly notable on the turnover side. A 209% rise means significantly more value was exchanged compared with the preceding trading session, suggesting that the market experienced considerably heavier transactional activity.
Twenty-nine listed equities participated in trading, although the session ended with more stocks declining than advancing.
Three equities recorded price gains, while six ended the session lower. The remaining securities traded without recording gains or losses sufficient to alter the day’s overall balance.
The trading pattern reflected a market where activity was concentrated in a handful of heavily traded counters, with MTN Ghana accounting for the largest share of volume.
MTN Ghana Dominates Trading Volume
MTN Ghana emerged as the most actively traded equity, recording 2.87 million shares.
Its trading volume was significantly ahead of the other heavily traded securities. Ecobank Transnational followed with 129,477 shares, while CalBank recorded 126,513 shares. Kasapreko completed the leading group with 112,311 shares.
The concentration of trading in MTN Ghana meant that one counter accounted for a substantial portion of the day’s total market volume.
Despite its dominance in trading activity, MTN Ghana did not finish the session in positive territory. The telecommunications giant declined by 0.76%.
Ecobank Transnational also ended lower, falling 2.87%, while Digicut Production & Advertising declined by 2.44%.
SIC Insurance Leads The Gainers
SIC Insurance Company provided one of the strongest positive moves of the session, climbing 4.6% to close at GH¢5.23 per share.
The insurer led the three equities that recorded gains, giving investors a notable price appreciation amid an otherwise mixed market.
Kasapreko followed with a marginal 0.56% increase, while Societe Generale Ghana gained 0.18%.
The limited number of gainers contrasted sharply with the broader increase in trading activity. It showed that the surge in market turnover did not translate into widespread upward price movements across listed equities.
Clydestone Suffers Sharpest Decline
While SIC Insurance led the gainers, Clydestone Ghana recorded the steepest decline.
The company’s share price fell by 9.76% to GH¢4.07 at the end of trading. The decline placed Clydestone firmly at the bottom of the day’s performers.
Ecobank Transnational was the second-largest decliner, losing 2.87%. Digicut Production & Advertising followed with a 2.44% drop, while MTN Ghana shed 0.76%.
The performance of these counters helped push the benchmark index lower despite the substantial increase in market turnover.
GSE Composite Index Gives Up 0.5%
The GSE Composite Index closed at 14,215.45 points after shedding 71.69 points, representing a 0.5% decline.
The daily decline, however, sits within a more mixed medium-term performance.
Over one week, the GSE-CI remained up 0.38%. Its four-week performance stood at a 5.79% loss, while the index maintained a substantial 62.09% gain since the beginning of the year.
The GSE Financial Stocks Index also declined during the session, dropping 0.44% to close at 7,562.01 points.
Despite the day’s decline, the financial stocks benchmark remained up 2.33% over one week. Its four-week performance showed a 3.96% decline, while its year-to-date gain stood at 62.72%.
These figures underline the sharp contrast between the market’s daily movement and its much stronger performance since the start of the year.
Market Capitalisation Remains Above GH¢271 Billion
The Ghana Stock Exchange ended the session with market capitalisation of GH¢271.3 billion, equivalent to approximately US$23.4 billion.
The figure keeps the local equities market at a substantial level even as the benchmark indices experience short-term fluctuations.
Thursday’s session therefore presented a striking combination of stronger market activity and weaker headline index performance. Investors traded significantly more shares and generated considerably higher turnover, yet the number of declining equities exceeded gainers and both major indices finished in negative territory.
With 3.55 million shares changing hands and turnover reaching GH¢22.55 million, the session demonstrated how quickly trading activity can accelerate even when price performance remains under pressure.
The latest performance leaves the GSE with a market shaped by strong year-to-date gains, short-term volatility and renewed trading activity, as investors continue to reposition across key listed equities.
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