The Nigerian stock market continued its strong recovery on Monday, with investors gaining N3.17 trillion as sustained buying across banking, industrial, oil and gas, and insurance stocks pushed the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index above the 234,000-point mark.
Market data showed the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 2.15 per cent to close at 234,178.23 points, up from 229,240.19 points recorded on Friday. Market capitalisation also increased to N150.27 trillion, lifting the market’s year-to-date return to 50.49 per cent.
The latest rally follows Friday’s recovery, when the equities market added N3.16 trillion after rebounding from last week’s sell-off. Analysts attributed Monday’s gains to renewed investor confidence and increased demand for fundamentally strong blue-chip stocks ahead of the second-quarter earnings season.
Major gainers included First HoldCo, Wema Bank, Aradel Holdings, NGX Group, Dangote Cement, Lafarge Africa, GTCO, Access Holdings, UBA, Fidelity Bank, MTN Nigeria, Nigerian Breweries, and Oando.
Market activity remained robust, with trading volume rising by 18.4 per cent to 538.64 million shares, while the value of transactions climbed 40.18 per cent to N38.70 billion across 64,065 deals.
First HoldCo and Wema Bank led the gainers’ chart after both appreciated by the maximum daily limit of 10 per cent. Aradel Holdings, NGX Group, and Veritas Kapital Assurance also recorded strong gains.
On the losing side, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO) and Vitafoam Nigeria each declined by 10 per cent, while Chemical and Allied Products (CAP), FTG Insurance, and Thomas Wyatt Nigeria also closed lower.
Sectoral performance remained positive across the board. The Industrial Goods Index posted the strongest gain of 4.89 per cent, driven by rallies in Dangote Cement and Lafarge Africa. The Oil and Gas Index rose 4.22 per cent, while the Banking Index advanced 3.05 per cent on renewed demand for major banking stocks.
Zenith Bank emerged as the most actively traded stock by both volume and value, accounting for 89.46 million shares worth N9.77 billion.
Market analysts expect the positive momentum to continue in the near term, supported by bargain hunting, portfolio rebalancing, attractive stock valuations, and expectations of strong second-quarter corporate earnings.
