Financial, oil gains push NGX to N158.4tn

The Nigerian Exchange posted an upbeat session on Tuesday as aggressive buying in heavyweight financial and energy equities lifted the market capitalisation by N650bn to close at N158.40tn, up from N157.75tn recorded in the previous trading session.

The benchmark All-Share Index similarly gained momentum, rising by 2,081.41 points to settle at 244,304.51 points, the highest level recorded since the market hit a weekly low of 242,223.10 points on September 9. Trading volume hit a robust 520.65 million shares valued across 71,977 deals, driven by sustained institutional appetite for growth-oriented tickers.

Sectoral performance reflected broad-based bullish sentiments across key tracks. The NGX Premium Index appreciated to 30,275.09 points, while the NGX 30 Index closed higher at 8,989.03 points. Increased momentum in energy counters elevated the NGX Oil and Gas Index to 6,035.23 points, accompanied by steady appreciation in the NGX Consumer Goods Index to 4,081.31 points and the NGX Banking Index to 2,548.00 points.

Dampening the overall gain were minor pullbacks in the NGX Insurance Index, which dipped to 1,051.62 points, and the NGX Industrial Index, which slid to 9,936.57 points. Investors continued to price in macroeconomic headwinds as the Central Bank of Nigeria retained its Monetary Policy Rate at 26.50 per cent.

On the gainers’ chart, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc led the pack with a 9.95 per cent jump to close at N179.00 per share.

Aradel Holdings Plc followed closely, adding N136.00 to end the session at N1,550.00 per share, representing a 9.62 per cent gain. Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc advanced by 9.50 per cent to N1.96, McNichols Consolidated Plc rose by 9.09 per cent to N4.80, and International Breweries Plc climbed 8.50 per cent to N10.85 per share.

Conversely, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated topped the losers’ chart after shedding 10.00 per cent to close at N66.60 per share. Trans-Nationwide Express Plc declined by 9.93 per cent to N2.45, AVA Capital Plc lost 9.90 per cent to finish at N4.55, and PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc contracted by 9.52 per cent to N75.10 per share. Heavyweight manufacturer BUA Cement Plc also dropped 2.91 per cent to end at N270.00 per share.

Activity in the Exchange-Traded Funds and Fixed Income segments recorded moderate participation. In the ETF category, SIAML Pension ETF 40 rallied by 9.69 per cent to close at N2,190.00 per share, while Lotus Halal Equity ETF appreciated by 7.55 per cent to N129.46 per share. In the debt market, investors traded 12,012 units of bonds across five deals, highlighted by a 1.00 per cent price decline in the 17.121 per cent FGS JUN 2028 bond to N99.00 per unit.