Nigeria’s stock market extended its recent decline in the week ended August 21, with the NGX All-Share Index falling by 3,268.04 points, or 1.35%, to close at 239,351.16 points. The decline came as selling pressure spread across banking, oil and gas, insurance and growth stocks, pushing the market’s month-to-date return into negative territory at -2.42%. Despite the setback, investors still have plenty to cheer about, with the market retaining a strong year-to-date gain of 53.81%.
Market capitalisation also dropped by 1.33% to N154.534 trillion, while trading activity weakened considerably during the week. Total volume fell by 48.62% to 6.24 billion shares, while the number of deals declined by 16.79% to 186,496. However, transaction value remained relatively strong at N157.76 billion. The financial services sector continued to dominate trading, accounting for 89.62% of total market volume, with Fortis Global Insurance, Lasaco Assurance and Consolidated Hallmark Holdings among the most actively traded stocks.
Amid the broad market sell-off, Haldane McCall emerged as the week’s best-performing Nigerian stock, jumping 32.30% from N2.91 to N3.85. Trans-Nationwide Express followed with a 16.20% gain to N3.30, while Dangote Sugar Refinery, Cadbury Nigeria and UAC of Nigeria also recorded gains of 5.19%, 4.68% and 4.62%, respectively. Other stocks that made the top 10 gainers list included Legend Internet, Honeywell Flour Mill, RT Briscoe, The Initiates and NPF Microfinance Bank.
On the losing side, insurance stocks suffered the heaviest blows, occupying four positions among the week’s 10 biggest decliners. International Energy Insurance led the losses, plunging 27.26% to N3.87, followed by Fortis Global Insurance, which fell 23.95% to N2.00. Royal Exchange dropped 18.49%, while Red Star Express declined 18.33%. The NGX Oil & Gas Index was the worst-performing major sector, falling 4.64%, while the Insurance and Banking indices declined 3.75% and 2.92%, respectively. Consumer Goods was the only major sector to record a gain, edging up 0.05%.
The latest correction means the NGX All-Share Index is now 3.69% below its August 10 record high of 248,529.75 points, although the market remains up more than 53% in 2026. Investors also watched several corporate developments during the week, including the suspension of Universal Insurance shares following the revocation of its operating licence by NAICOM. Meanwhile, Veritas Kapital Assurance listed an additional 15 billion shares, while dividend adjustments were made for Presco, Custodian Investment and MTN Nigeria. With the market still delivering strong year-to-date returns despite the recent pullback, investors will be watching closely to see whether the correction deepens or bargain hunters return to selected stocks.
source: nairametrics
