Stock Market Rally Continues as Investors Gain ₦344bn

By Taiye Olayemi

The Nigerian stock market extended its bullish run on Friday as investors gained N344 billion at the close of trading, driven by renewed buying interest in consumer goods, industrial and service sector equities.

The rally pushed the market capitalisation of listed equities on the Nigerian Exchange Limited, NGX, from N159.733 trillion recorded on Thursday to N160.077 trillion, representing a 0.22 per cent increase.

Similarly, the All-Share Index, ASI, advanced by 536.98 points or 0.22 per cent to close at 249,712.37, compared to 249,175.39 posted in the previous trading session.

The sustained market rally further strengthened investors’ confidence as the year-to-date return climbed to 60.47 per cent, reflecting the continued resilience of the equities market despite economic pressures.

Market breadth also closed on a positive note, with 30 gainers outperforming 27 losers at the end of trading.

The market’s upward momentum was largely driven by strong performances recorded by Aluminium Extrusion Industries, DAAR Communications, RT Briscoe, Learn Africa and Red Star Express alongside 25 other appreciating stocks.

Aluminium Extrusion Industries and DAAR Communications topped the gainers’ chart with 10 per cent appreciation each to close at N9.90 and N2.09 per share respectively.

RT Briscoe rose by 9.93 per cent to close at N14.06, while Learn Africa appreciated by 9.79 per cent to settle at N12.90 per share.

Red Star Express also recorded a 9.56 per cent gain to close at N34.95 per share.

On the flip side, Trans-Nationwide Express led the losers’ table after shedding 9.92 per cent to close at N5.72 per share.

Livestock Feeds declined by 9.64 per cent to close at N8.90, while The Initiates lost 8.65 per cent to settle at N33.80 per share.

Also, Ellah Lakes dropped by 8.64 per cent to close at N10.05, while Neimeth Pharmaceuticals declined by 6.36 per cent to end the session at N10.30 per share.

Trading activity, however, slowed compared to the previous session as total volume traded declined by 32.76 per cent.

A total of 711.86 million shares valued at N29.08 billion were exchanged in 62,386 deals during the trading session.

Fidelity Bank emerged as the most actively traded stock by both volume and value, accounting for 198.08 million shares worth N4.59 billion.

The bank’s transactions represented 27.83 per cent of the total volume traded and 15.80 per cent of the market value recorded for the day, underlining strong investor appetite for banking stocks.