Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX)
Trading activities at the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) strengthened significantly last week with trading volume, number of deals and total value traded spiking by 23.85 per cent, 21.86 per cent and 20.77 per cent, respectively.
Investors traded about 5.99 billion shares valued at N347.81 billion in 406,393 deals, indicating stronger market participation and improved liquidity across the exchange.
Investors gained approximately N1.1 trillion in one week as market capitalisation advanced to N157.09 trillion amid renewed buying interest in industrial, banking and insurance stocks.
The bullish momentum lifted the all-share index by 1.03 per cent week-on-week (w/w) to close at 244,775.83 points, further strengthening the market’s year-to-date return to 57.3 per cent and reinforcing sustained investors’ confidence in the domestic equities market.
Market breadth also closed positive as 69 stocks recorded gains against 36 losers, reflecting persistent buying interest across major counters despite profit-taking in selected large-cap stocks.
Trading activities strengthened significantly during the week as the number of deals, trading volume and total value traded increased by 21.86 per cent, 23.85 per cent and 20.77 per cent, respectively.
Sectoral performance remained broadly positive with the industrial goods sector emerging as the strongest performer after gaining 5.11 per cent, driven by sustained demand for CAP, Meyer and BUA Cement shares.
The insurance sector also recorded a strong performance, rising by 4.01 per cent following renewed interest in Sovereign Insurance and Linkage Assurance among others, while the banking sector appreciated by 1.89 per cent on the back of buying interest in ETI, Fidelity Bank and GTCO.
However, bearish sentiment persisted in some sectors, such as oil and gas, which declined by 3.27 per cent, largely due to profit-taking in Aradel despite gains recorded in Totalenergies, JapaulGold and Oando.
Similarly, the consumer goods sector closed marginally lower by 0.26 per cent following sell pressure in Guinness, PZ and Honeywell Flour.
Among the top-performing stocks during the week, CAP led the gainers table with a 61 per cent appreciation, followed by Zichis with 53.2 per cent, FTNcocoa with 50.9 per cent, RTBriscoe (41 per cent) and Dangsugar (33.4 per cent).
On the losers’ chart, NAHCO declined by 20.9 per cent, Guinness fell by 19 per cent, Accessorp lost 12.6 per cent, while MTN and UPDC shed 12.4 per cent and 12.2 per cent respectively.
Analysts said the equities market maintained a strong bullish outlook supported by sustained investor confidence, rising trading activity and broad-based sectoral gains, particularly within industrial goods, banking and insurance stocks.
They, however, noted that short-term volatility may persist as investors continue profit-taking in recently rallying large-cap stocks alongside ongoing sector rotation across the market.
Despite this, market sentiment is expected to remain broadly positive, although future gains may become more selective and increasingly influenced by macroeconomic conditions, including inflation trends, interest rate direction and foreign exchange stability.
The Chief Research Officer of Investdata Consulting Limited, Ambrose Omordion, said recent trading patterns reflect a growing shift by investors into selective stocks with strong price momentum, improved earnings prospects and speculative appeal.
According to him, the performance of key equities suggests that market participants are increasingly deploying funds into specific counters rather than adopting broad-based positioning, a trend that has continued to shape overall market dynamics.
He noted that sustained demand in the targeted segments has helped to support positive market breadth even in periods when the benchmark index closed on a bearish note, underscoring the role of stock selection in driving short-term market performance.
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