The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) staged a strong rebound on Monday, adding ₦539.98 billion to its market capitalisation and reversing the losses recorded in the previous week.
The All-Share Index (ASI) climbed by 924.38 points or 0.85% to close at 109,953.00, up from 109,028.62 on Friday. In tandem, the market capitalisation rose from ₦68.8 trillion to ₦69.3 trillion, signaling renewed buying interest in large and mid-cap equities across major sectors.
Market Drivers and Sector Gains
The day’s rally was fueled by notable performances from key stocks, with Aradel Holdings Plc leading gainers after appreciating by 9.98% to close at ₦505.90 per share.
Other top performers included:
- University Press Plc – up 9.86% to ₦4.79
- Associated Bus Company Plc – gained 8.43% to ₦2.70
- Linkage Assurance Plc – rose 8.16% to ₦1.59
However, the gainers’ chart was counterbalanced by steep losses in select stocks. Tripple Gee & Company Plc led the laggards, falling 10% to ₦2.07. MRS Oil Nigeria Plc dropped 9.97% to ₦141.80, while Chellarams Plc and Union Homes Real Estate Investment Trust declined 9.96% and 9.95%, respectively.
Trading Activity and Market Breadth
Despite the bullish close, overall trading volume and value declined:
- 414.51 million shares were exchanged in 19,775 deals
- Total value stood at ₦11.09 billion
- Compared to Friday, trading volume fell by 35%, turnover dropped 39%, while the number of deals increased by 24%
This suggests growing investor participation despite the decline in volumes a possible indication of selective accumulation.
Top Traded Stocks
Leading the volume chart was Fidelity Bank Plc with 46.8 million shares traded, followed by:
- Custodian & Allied Plc – 37.2 million shares
- Access Holdings Plc – 35.9 million shares
- Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) – 24.9 million shares
Sector Performance
Across the board, performance was broadly positive:
- NGX Oil & Gas Index: +3.02%
- Consumer Goods Index: +2.2%
- Main Board Index: +1.12%
- Top 30 Index: +0.65%
- Premium Board Index: +0.33%
- Pension Index: +0.29%
Outlook and Year-to-Date Performance
The NGX All-Share Index has now returned 6.83% year-to-date, signaling measured optimism amid ongoing macroeconomic concerns including interest rate volatility and FX market fluctuations.
Last week, the market closed on a bearish note, losing ₦197 billion in market value as investor sentiment weakened. However, analysts at Afrinvest had forecast a turnaround driven by bargain hunting.
“Next week, we expect investors to take advantage of re-entry opportunities into fundamentally sound tickers following recent price depreciation,” the firm noted.
Monday’s performance appears to validate that projection, setting a potentially bullish tone for the remainder of the trading week.
