By Boluwatife Oshadiya | July 21, 2026
Key Points
- Nigerian equities added more than ₦307 billion as market capitalisation climbed above ₦159 trillion
- NGX All-Share Index advanced 0.19% to 246,659.56 points, lifting the year-to-date return to 58.51%
- Analysts expect positive momentum to continue despite the possibility of short-term profit-taking
Main Story
Investors’ wealth on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) rose above ₦159 trillion on Tuesday after sustained buying interest pushed the local equity market higher, extending this week’s bullish momentum.
The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) gained 0.19% to close at 246,659.56 points, while total market capitalisation increased by approximately ₦307 billion to ₦159.12 trillion, reflecting renewed demand across major listed equities.
The latest gain lifted the market’s year-to-date return to 58.51%, reinforcing the Nigerian stock market’s position as one of Africa’s strongest-performing equity markets in 2026.
Trading activity, however, painted a mixed picture. The number of executed deals declined by 11.98% to 50,059 transactions, while total transaction value slipped marginally by 0.63% to ₦49.28 billion, suggesting investors remained selective despite the broader rally.
ACCESSCORP emerged as the day’s most actively traded stock, accounting for 336.62 million shares valued at ₦8.65 billion. Market breadth remained firmly positive, with 33 gainers outperforming 20 losers, resulting in a healthy breadth ratio of 1.65x.
Among the day’s top performers were UPDCREIT, which appreciated 9.86%, followed by THOMASWY at 9.74% and IKEJAHOTEL with 9.53% gains. On the downside, MECURE lost 9.95%, while HMCALL and CMFC declined 9.86% and 9.85%, respectively.
Sector performance was largely positive. The Insurance Index gained 0.49%, Consumer Goods rose 0.47%, Industrial Goods advanced 0.04%, while the Oil and Gas Index edged up 0.03%. The Banking Index was the only major laggard, slipping 0.02%, while the Commodity Index closed flat.
Trading volume improved by 9.49% to 932.45 million shares, indicating stronger market participation despite softer transaction values.
What’s Being Said
“We expect the market’s positive momentum to persist, supported by continued strategic investor repositioning and portfolio rebalancing. Nevertheless, intermittent profit-taking in recently appreciated stocks could moderate the pace of gains in the near term,” Cowry Asset Management Limited said in its market commentary.
What’s Next
- Investors will continue monitoring second-quarter corporate earnings releases for fresh market direction.
- Portfolio rebalancing by institutional investors is expected to remain a key driver of trading activity.
- Analysts anticipate intermittent profit-taking but expect positive sentiment to remain intact as earnings season gathers momentum.
The Bottom Line: Nigeria’s equity market continues to attract strong investor confidence despite pockets of profit-taking. Sustained earnings growth, improving macroeconomic sentiment and institutional buying are likely to remain the primary catalysts supporting the NGX’s record-breaking run.
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