Nigerian Stock Market Tops ₦94 Trillion As Cement, Banking Stocks Drive Gains

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) recorded a significant milestone on Thursday, surpassing ₦94 trillion in market capitalisation as renewed investor interest in cement and banking stocks fueled a rally ahead of the 2025 third-quarter earnings season.

Investors shifted capital from the fixed-income segment to equities amid declining naira asset yields and repriced spot rates in the debt market. This movement spurred risk-on sentiment, driving the NGX’s key performance indicators up by 41 basis points and lifting the year-to-date return to 44.1%.

Major contributors to the market’s upswing included FirstHoldco, Sterling Financial Holdings (STERLINGNG), May & Baker, Dangote Cement (DANGCEM), and Lafarge Africa (WAPCO), among others. Their performance collectively boosted investors’ wealth by approximately ₦389 billion in a single session.

The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) gained 612.82 basis points, representing a 0.41% rise, to close at a new all-time high of 148,355.04. Consequently, market capitalisation jumped by ₦388.96 billion to ₦94.17 trillion.

Trading activity also improved, with total volume and value rising by 11.13% and 35.47%, respectively. According to data from Atlass Portfolio Limited, roughly 432.43 million shares worth ₦16.91 billion were exchanged across 23,665 transactions.

CONHALLPLC topped the activity chart by volume, representing 9.51% of all traded shares, followed by ACCESSCORP (9.37%), GTCO (6.40%), ZENITHBANK (5.82%), and TANTALIZER (5.16%). GTCO emerged as the day’s most traded stock by value, accounting for 15.36% of total turnover.

On the gainers’ list, NSLTECH led with a 7.06% increase, followed by STERLINGNG (+6.49%), LIVESTOCK (+5.53%), TIP (+5.18%), MAYBAKER (+4.99%), and JAPAULGOLD (+4.72%).

Meanwhile, 26 stocks closed in the red, led by SUNUASSUR, which dipped 9.71%, followed by CUSTODIAN (-4.55%), CHAMS (-3.66%), VERITASKAP (-2.78%), DANGSUGAR (-2.51%), and FIDELITYBK (-0.25%).

The market breadth was positive with 30 gainers against 26 losers. Sectoral performance also ended largely bullish, with the industrial goods index rising 1.44%, consumer goods up 0.24%, banking up 0.21%, and oil & gas advancing 0.18%. The insurance sector, however, declined by 1.35%.