Nigeria’s equities market regained the N160 trillion market capitalisation mark on Monday as strong buying in oil and gas stocks helped the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) recover ground despite widespread losses across several listed companies.
The NGX All-Share Index gained 0.29 per cent to close at 247,699.78 points, pushing its year-to-date return to 59.18 per cent. Market capitalisation also climbed by about N1.04 trillion, or 0.65 per cent, to N160.60 trillion. However, the recovery was far from broad-based, with 43 stocks closing in the red compared with just 12 gainers.
Oil and gas stocks provided the biggest boost, with the NGX Oil and Gas Index jumping 5.90 per cent. Aradel Holdings led the sector’s performance, gaining 5.38 per cent to N1,570, while about N7.59 billion worth of its shares changed hands. MTN Nigeria also supported the market, rising 2.45 per cent to N832.90, while International Breweries gained 3.02 per cent. Zichis Agro Allied emerged as the day’s strongest percentage gainer, advancing 9.97 per cent to N18.20.
The gains from a few heavyweight stocks helped cushion losses in the banking and insurance sectors. UBA dropped 1.85 per cent, Zenith Bank declined 1.24 per cent, Access Holdings fell 0.83 per cent, while GTCO lost 0.75 per cent. As a result, the banking index slipped 1.13 per cent and the insurance index fell 1.60 per cent. Trading activity also weakened, with 407.85 million shares worth N27.25 billion exchanged in 52,322 deals, while Access Holdings recorded the highest volume at about 40.04 million shares.
The latest rebound comes as investors look ahead to major developments that could reshape activity on the Nigerian capital market. Nigeria is scheduled to return to FTSE Russell’s Frontier Market classification on September 21, while the planned Dangote Petroleum Refinery IPO, expected to open on September 14, could bring another major wave of activity. For now, however, the NGX recovery appears to be driven by concentrated buying in selected stocks rather than a market-wide rally, leaving investors watching oil and gas shares, banking reforms and upcoming capital-market transactions closely.
source: The guardian
