Nigeria’s equities market recorded a strong performance last week, with oil and gas stocks driving gains on the Nigerian Exchange Limited as investors added about N2.67 trillion to market capitalisation.
The rally was largely powered by the oil and gas index, which surged by 9.43 per cent following strong investor demand for shares of Aradel Holdings Plc and Oando Plc.
Market data showed that the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 2.15 per cent to close at 196,968.15 points, lifting the total market capitalisation to N126.43 trillion from N123.76 trillion recorded in the previous week.
The growth pushed the market’s year-to-date return to 26.58 per cent, reflecting sustained investor appetite for equities despite macroeconomic pressures.
Following the oil and gas sector, the industrial goods index posted a 3.89 per cent gain, supported by buying interest in Premier Paints Plc, Lafarge Africa Plc, and Dangote Cement Plc.
The consumer goods sector also advanced by 1.12 per cent on renewed demand for PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc and Cadbury Nigeria Plc.
Similarly, the banking sector recorded a marginal gain of 0.24 per cent, buoyed by investor interest in Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, and Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc.
However, the insurance sector closed the week in negative territory, shedding 1.88 per cent amid selling pressure on AXA Mansard Insurance Plc, Universal Insurance Plc, and Cornerstone Insurance Plc.
Despite the overall market gain, breadth remained weak with 44 gainers compared to 58 decliners, suggesting that losses across several stocks moderated the broader rally.
Trading activity also slowed during the week as total volume and turnover declined by 32.52 per cent and 9.51 per cent respectively on a week-on-week basis.
Nevertheless, the number of deals improved slightly by 0.35 per cent, with investors exchanging about 3.7 billion shares valued at N177.76 billion in 371,317 transactions.
Among individual stocks, FTN Cocoa Processors Plc led the gainers’ chart with a 58.5 per cent surge, followed by Premier Paints which rose by 32.7 per cent.
Other notable gainers included Eterna Plc, which gained 28.7 per cent, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc which advanced by 21.7 per cent, and UAC of Nigeria Plc which appreciated by 20.6 per cent.
On the flip side, MCNichols Plc topped the losers’ chart after shedding 24.4 per cent, followed by Mecure Industries Plc which declined by 18.9 per cent.
Multiverse Mining and Exploration Plc dropped 18.7 per cent, while Jaiz Bank Plc lost 18.4 per cent. Omatek Ventures Plc also fell by 15.4 per cent amid profit-taking by investors.
Meanwhile, in the foreign exchange market, the naira weakened slightly against the U.S. dollar across both official and parallel segments.
The local currency depreciated by 2.19 per cent at the official window to close at N1,393.26 per dollar, while it also slipped by 2.14 per cent in the parallel market to about N1,391 per dollar.
Nigeria’s external reserves, however, recorded a modest increase, rising by 0.75 per cent to $49.88 billion, supported by improved foreign exchange inflows.
Oil Stocks Drive Market Rally as NGX Gains N2.67trn
