Despite a bruising selloff in the final two trading sessions, the Nigerian equities market closed last week on a bullish note, posting a historic weekly gain of N1.17 trillion in market capitalisation—its highest weekly close on record.
The market’s capitalisation rose from N69.29 trillion at the opening bell on Monday to N70.46 trillion at the close of trading on Friday.
The benchmark All-Share Index (ASI) followed suit, climbing 2.5per cent week-on-week to settle at 111,742.01 basis points, driven by robust investor appetite in heavyweight counters and renewed optimism across key sectors.
Much of the rally was underpinned by renewed interest in Airtel Africa, which surged 10 per cent on the back of its ongoing $10 million share buy-back programme, a move widely seen as a show of confidence by the telco’s management. Other market leaders contributing to the bullish momentum included BUA Foods (+5.3 per cent), MTN Nigeria (+3.7 per cent), and Transcorp Hotels (+6.5 per cent).
Sectoral performance mirrored this bullish sentiment. The NGX Consumer Goods Index advanced 3.8 per cent, Insurance rose one per cent, Banking ticked up 0.7 per cent, and Industrial Goods inched up by 0.3 per cent. However, the Oil & Gas Index bucked the trend, declining by 2.1 per cent, weighed down by profit-taking and sector-specific concerns.
Despite a mixed close, trading activity was robust. While total volume dipped marginally by 3.5 per cent, trading value surged 59.6 per cent week-on-week. In total, investors exchanged 1.90 billion shares worth N64.15 billion across 18,653 deals, reflecting a continued interest in Nigerian equities even amid global uncertainties.
The week’s positive momentum, however, hit a speed bump on Friday, when the market slipped into the red. The ASI edged down 0.07 per cent, translating into a N48 billion loss in market capitalisation, as a wave of profit-taking swept across bellwether stocks.
Market breadth turned negative with 37 losers outpacing 27 gainers. Top performers included Omatek (+9.62 per cent), Red Star Express (+9.62 per cent), Sovereign Trust Insurance (+9.82 per cent), and May & Baker (+8.26%). On the flip side, Seplat and NCR led the laggards, each shedding 10 per cent, alongside steep declines in Conoil (-9.99 per cent), Legendary Investments (-9.94 per cent), and International Medical Group (-9.91 per cent).
Friday’s selloff also triggered mild sectoral pullbacks, with Banking, Insurance, Consumer Goods, and Oil & Gas all closing in the red. Only the Industrial Goods and Commodity indices managed modest gains of 0.29 per cent and 0.12 per cent, respectively.
Looking ahead, market analysts project a shift toward cautious optimism. While last week’s rally signals investor resilience, sentiment may temper in the days ahead, as participants await key macroeconomic indicators and monitor external pressures, including global trade tensions and interest rate signals.