Nigeria’s equities market maintained its bullish momentum on Thursday as renewed buying interest across major stocks pushed total market capitalisation up by N622 billion. The gains reflected continued positive sentiment among investors, with 28 stocks recording price increases during the session.

The NGX All-Share Index rose by 958.99 points, representing a 0.38 per cent increase, to close at 252,150.01 points. Meanwhile, overall market capitalisation climbed from the previous session to N163.679 trillion, supported by gains in several large- and medium-capitalised companies.

The market’s positive performance was driven largely by price appreciation in Seplat Energy, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO), NASCON Allied Industries, Fidson Healthcare and The Initiates Plc (TIP). Critical Minerals Financing Corp. led the gainers with a 10 per cent rise to N2.97 per share, followed by R.T. Briscoe, which gained 9.55 per cent to N9.75, while Caverton Offshore Support Group advanced 8.75 per cent to N4.35.

Despite the strong performance, some stocks moved in the opposite direction. Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals led the decliners, falling 7.23 per cent to N7.70 per share, while Ellah Lakes dropped 5.33 per cent to N8.00 and Mutual Benefits Assurance declined 4.65 per cent to N3.28. Cowry Assets Management said the market could maintain its bullish direction as investor sentiment improves, although profit-taking could slow the pace of further gains.

Trading activity, however, weakened during the session, with total volume falling 38.5 per cent to 978.29 million shares, valued at N50.16 billion across 48,558 deals. Fidelity Bank dominated trading volume with 335.203 million shares worth N6.914 billion, followed by VFD Group with 122.056 million shares valued at N1.397 billion and Transcorp with 65.936 million shares worth N2.438 billion. The session leaves investors watching closely to see whether the current buying momentum can carry the NGX higher in subsequent sessions.

source: leadership