The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) increased by N1.4 trillion in August, owing to robust purchasing emotions across tickers. The Nigerian Exchange All-Share index increased 3.44% to 66.548.99 points, the highest level since March 2008.
Following the amount of the gain announced on the local exchange, the year-to-date return closed at 30% in August. According to the statistics office, the monthly return on the local bourse was 29.8%, well ahead of the yearly inflation rate of 24.08%.
According to Afrinvest’s market update, the rise was fueled by a persistent hunt for gains, which was fueled by market-stimulating corporate measures and dividend payments.
Surprisingly, following a strong 3.44% rise in August, equities investors began the new month in a more bullish manner, with the benchmark index of the local market gaining for another week, achieving a 3.00% increase week on week. Despite lower overall market gains and momentum, the Nigerian Exchange All-Share Index (ASI) reached a fresh all-time high of 67,527.19 points.
As a consequence, the overall market capitalization of listed stocks increased by 3.00% week on week, reaching a notable N36.95 trillion compared to the previous week’s value of N35.88 trillion. Thus, equity investors have earned N1.08 trillion, bringing the year-to-date return to 31.76%, highlighting the Nigerian market’s outstanding resilience in the face of current global uncertainty.
On sector performance, the Consumer Goods sector emerged as the leading gainer this week with +7.58% and was followed by the oil & gas, banking, industrial and Insurance sectors.
The breakdown showed that the oil and gas index rose by +5.38%, the banking index advanced by 5.11% while industrial stock got 2.00% push-up and the insurance sector rose 0.80%. Key market players such as NAHCO, DANGSUGAR, SEPLAT, MBENEFIT, and LASACO have significantly contributed to these sectoral gains.
Trading activity was heavy last week volumes and value spiked, according to data from the Nigerian Exchange. Trading activity levels mirrored the market’s broad gauge, as the total trading volume and value grew by 38.5% and 12.0% week on week respectively.
Meanwhile, the weekly deals registered a 30.72% increase, reaching a total of 40,736 deals. The average traded volume witnessed a robust surge of 38.48%, settling at 2.51 billion units. The weekly average value surged 12.01%, measuring N32.82 billion in contrast to the preceding week’s figure of N29.29 billion.
NAHCO, led the charge with a remarkable surge of 42%, closely trailed by ABCTRANS at 40%, and DANGSUGAR at 27%. Conversely, MAYBAKER dropped by 12%, while LINKASSURE and ELLAHLAKES went down by 10% and 7% due to adverse price movements.
Cowry Asset stockbrokers said they anticipate that the market sentiment will remain mixed due to ongoing portfolio realignments. They said this will be influenced by a combination of bargain hunting and uncertainty regarding future money market yields, particularly in light of the upcoming earnings reports from first-tier banks and the continuation of sectoral rotation.
In its market update, stock analysts at Cordros Capital said they anticipate mixed sentiments in the week ahead, as investors continue to cherry-pick fundamentally sound stocks based on recent corporate actions. However, traders acknowledge the possibility of profit-taking activities on stocks that have experienced notable appreciation in recent weeks.
