NGX Rallies 3.71% Week-on-Week as Blue Chips Add ₦3.84trn Value

The Nigerian equity market closed the week on a strong footing, with sustained buying interest in heavyweight stocks lifting key indices and deepening investors’ gains.

The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 3.71 per cent week-on-week to settle at 162,298.08 points, driven largely by rallies in major stocks such as MTN Nigeria (+7.63% w/w), SEPLAT (+10.00% w/w) and GTCO (+7.48% w/w). These gains more than offset declines recorded in FIRSTHOLDCO (-5.53% w/w), ACCESSCORP (-1.52% w/w) and HONYFLOUR (-2.17% w/w).

As a result, the market’s year-to-date return strengthened to 4.30 per cent, up from 3.70 per cent in the previous week, while total market capitalisation expanded by ₦3.84 trillion to close at ₦103.78 trillion, underscoring renewed investor confidence.

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On the final trading day of the week, the market extended its bullish tone, closing 0.93 per cent higher, supported by strong demand for MTN Nigeria (+7.63%), BETAGLASS (+9.87%) and CAP (+8.90%). These gains outweighed sell pressure in UACN (-4.38%), IKEJA HOTEL (-7.62%) and ETERNA (-5.91%), keeping the market firmly in positive territory.

Trading activity showed mixed signals. While overall participation moderated, transaction value rose by 12.61 per cent. A total of 624.08 million shares, worth ₦18.52 billion, were exchanged in 43,816 deals. ETRANZACT, which gained 9.89 per cent, led activity by volume with 72.95 million shares traded, while UNILEVER (+3.27%) topped the value chart with transactions worth ₦1.79 billion.

Market breadth closed firmly positive at a 1.66-to-1 ratio, reflecting stronger buying sentiment. IMG (+10.00%) led 47 gainers, while ALEX (-9.91%) topped the list of 28 decliners, with several stocks ending the session unchanged.

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The positive momentum also spilt into the NASD OTC Market, where the NASD Securities Index (NSI) rose by 0.13 per cent to 3,665.68 points, lifting market capitalisation to ₦2.19 trillion. Trading activity on the NASD was softer, with volume declining by 10.62 per cent and transaction value down 34.62 per cent, reflecting reduced participation. On the performance board, SDCSCSPLC (+1.04%) led the advancers, while SDFOODCPT (-11.11%) recorded the steepest decline.

Overall, the week’s performance highlights a market increasingly supported by renewed interest in fundamentally strong stocks, particularly blue-chip companies, as investors position themselves for earnings releases and dividend expectations in the weeks ahead.