A fresh wave of buying interest swept through the Nigerian equities market on Monday, extending its bullish streak and propelling key indicators to new milestones.
The momentum carried the All-Share Index of the Nigerian Exchange Limited beyond the 250,000-point threshold for the first time in recent trading sessions, as sustained demand for blue-chip and mid-tier stocks kept sentiment firmly positive.
By the close of trading, the index climbed 2.33 per cent to settle at 250,485.54 points. This performance lifted the market’s year-to-date return to 60.97 per cent, an improvement from 57.30 per cent recorded just a session earlier.
Investor wealth also expanded significantly, with equities market capitalisation rising from N157.09tn to N160.26tn—representing more than N3tn in gains within a single trading day. Overall market capitalisation stood even higher at N215.89tn, reflecting broad-based asset valuation across listed securities.
Broad-Based Demand Across Key Sectors
Trading activity showed increased participation across multiple sectors, with notable demand concentrated in consumer, industrial, and financial stocks.
Among the most actively traded equities were MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, First HoldCo Plc, Dangote Cement Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, and Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc. These stocks accounted for a large portion of the day’s turnover and reinforced the dominance of heavyweight names in shaping market direction.
Smaller and mid-cap stocks also contributed to the rally. Companies such as RT Briscoe, FTN Cocoa Processors, and Livestock Feeds recorded strong demand, helping to broaden market participation beyond the usual high-cap counters.
Stronger Liquidity and Rising Turnover
Market activity intensified noticeably during the session. Total volume traded increased by 30.82 per cent to 1.51 billion shares, while transaction value rose 17.23 per cent to N70.10bn across 95,093 deals.
The improvement in liquidity was also reflected in longer-term metrics. Year-to-date turnover rose to N3.37tn, while average daily value traded climbed to N38.74bn, suggesting sustained engagement from both institutional and retail investors.
Market breadth strengthened further, rising to 2.76x as 56 stocks posted gains compared to 21 decliners. This wide margin of advancers indicated that the rally was not confined to a few large-cap names but was instead supported by broad market participation.
Confidence Strengthens Among Investors
Analysts attribute the continued upswing to improving domestic participation, stronger liquidity conditions, and a renewed appetite for equities relative to other asset classes.
Commenting on the market performance, Vice Chairman of Highcap Securities, David Adonri, linked the rally to growing confidence in listed companies and stronger inflows into equities.
“The market is responding positively to improving investor sentiment and increased participation from both institutional and retail investors. We are also seeing renewed confidence in the resilience of listed companies and expectations of stronger corporate performance, which continue to support bullish activity on the Exchange,” he said.
With momentum still firmly in place, the market’s trajectory suggests that investor optimism remains a key driver, even as participants continue to reassess valuations across sectors that have already recorded significant year-to-date gains.