The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) closed Tuesday’s trading session on a strong note as renewed buying interest in major financial and oil stocks pushed the market capitalisation up by N650bn to N158.4tn. The market had opened from N157.75tn in the previous session, while the benchmark All-Share Index gained 2,081.41 points to close at 244,304.51 points.
Trading activity was also strong, with 520.65 million shares exchanged in 71,977 deals, reflecting continued investor interest in growth-oriented stocks. The positive session extended across several major market segments, with the NGX Premium Index rising to 30,275.09 points and the NGX 30 Index closing at 8,989.03 points.
The oil and gas sector was among the key drivers of the market’s performance, with the NGX Oil and Gas Index climbing to 6,035.23 points. The Consumer Goods Index also advanced to 4,081.31 points, while the Banking Index rose to 2,548.00 points. However, the gains were moderated by declines in the Insurance Index, which fell to 1,051.62 points, and the Industrial Index, which dropped to 9,936.57 points.
On the individual stocks chart, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc led the gainers, rising 9.95 per cent to N179.00 per share. Aradel Holdings Plc followed with a 9.62 per cent gain to N1,550.00, while Sovereign Trust Insurance, McNichols Consolidated and International Breweries also recorded notable gains. On the other side, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated fell 10 per cent to N66.60 per share, leading the decliners, followed by Trans-Nationwide Express, AVA Capital and PZ Cussons Nigeria.
Despite the broad market gains, investors continued to navigate the wider macroeconomic environment as the Central Bank of Nigeria maintained its Monetary Policy Rate at 26.50 per cent. Meanwhile, activity in exchange-traded funds and fixed-income securities remained moderate, with investors trading 12,012 units of bonds across five deals. The latest session highlights the continued influence of financial and energy stocks on the direction of the Nigerian equities market.
source: punch
