Equity investors on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) recorded a massive N1.4 trillion gain on Monday, the first trading day of the week, as strong buying interest in heavyweight stocks such as Dangote Cement, Aradel Holdings, UBA, FCMB and Transcorp drove the market sharply higher.
The All-Share Index (ASI) climbed 1.29% or 2,218.73 points to close at 173,946.22, while total market capitalisation rose by the same percentage to N111.66 trillion. The session extended the bullish momentum from the previous week, during which the market capitalisation surged by more than N4 trillion.
Stockbrokers attributed the rally to persistent bargain hunting across mid-cap and blue-chip names, particularly in the industrial and banking sectors. The Industrial Goods sector led the charge with a 4.76% advance, reflecting broad-based demand for large-capitalisation stocks.
Despite the strong price performance, overall trading activity slowed. Total volume declined 18.72% to 775.18 million units, while the value of transactions dropped 35.21% to N27.92 billion across 65,960 deals.
Access Holdings topped the volume leaderboard, accounting for 8.70% of total traded shares, followed by Zenith Bank (5.99%), NSLTECH (5.69%), Veritas Kapital Assurance (5.10%) and Mutual Benefits Assurance (4.39%). Zenith Bank dominated value traded, contributing 12.34% of the day’s total turnover.
Market participants said the continued rally reflects renewed confidence in selected fundamentally sound companies, supported by expectations of solid corporate earnings and improving macroeconomic sentiment. The NGX’s performance in early February has already added substantial value for investors after a volatile but ultimately positive January.
Analysts will be watching whether the current momentum can be sustained through the rest of the week, particularly as attention turns to upcoming corporate earnings releases and any fresh policy signals from the Central Bank of Nigeria. For now, Monday’s N1.4 trillion wealth creation underscores the resilience and underlying strength of Nigeria’s equities market.
