Nigerian Equities Beat 15-Year Record To Hit All-Time High At 66,490

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The Nigerian capital market received a wave of euphoria at the close of Tuesday’s trading, with the All-Share Index (ASI) of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) soaring to an unprecedented 66,490.34 points.

The index had risen by 0.51% from 66,151.38 the previous day, breaking the 15-year record of 66,371.20 set on March 5, 2008.

The market’s landmark achievement was largely credited to a surge in banking stocks, as investors sought to capitalize on recent record earnings announced by financial institutions. Market capitalization also saw a remarkable increase, closing at N39.69 trillion up by 0.51% from N36.21 trillion on Monday.

Since the inauguration of the Tinubu administration in May, the Nigerian stock market has been on an upward trajectory, registering impressive gains of 6.4% in June and 9.4% in July 2023. As of the end of July, the Year-to-Date (YTD) performance stood at 25.53%.

Further bolstering this bullish trend, stocks have already gained an additional 3.3% in August, positioning the market for a YTD return exceeding 29% by the month’s end this Friday.

A confluence of favourable economic policies has significantly contributed to this stellar performance. Notably, the government’s decisive actions—such as the elimination of fuel subsidies and the unification of exchange rates—have reinvigorated investor confidence.

This renewed enthusiasm was particularly evident in a surge of local investor engagement in the equity market, which, according to Nairametrics, rose by an astonishing 72% in July alone.

Sectoral Performance

Among the sectors, the NGX Banking Index experienced the most notable daily gain, surging by 1.63%. Following closely were the NGX Consumer Goods Index, up 0.99%, and the NGX Industrial Index with a 0.21% uptick. In contrast, the NGX Oil/Gas Index slid by 0.09%, while the NGX Insurance Index recorded a significant decline of 1.56%.

Trading Metrics

Tuesday’s trading session revealed a remarkable increase in transaction volumes and values. A total of 436.95 million units of shares, valued at N7.02 billion, were traded across 7,933 deals. FBN Holdings led in terms of both volume and value, trading with 55.15 million units worth N911.21 million. Japaul Gold and UBA followed closely.

Market Sentiment

Experts attribute the outstanding market performance to several factors, including investor sentiment influenced by macroeconomic trends and the formation of President Bola Tinubu’s new economic cabinet. Movements in yields within the fixed-income market were also cited as influencing factors.

Top Performers and Laggards

Champion Breweries and Flourmills led the top gainers with a remarkable 10% surge in their stock value. Conversely, CWG and Linkage Assurance were the biggest losers, with their stock value plummeting by 10%.

Special Mentions

Shares of companies worth over one trillion (SWOOTs) saw mixed results, with only GTCO and Zenith Bank closing positively.
Tier 1 banks, often referred to as FUGAZ (First Bank, UBA, GTBank, Access Bank, and Zenith Bank), also witnessed mixed trading sessions. All except UBA closed in the green.

Market Outlook

While the milestone was warmly received, market analysts emphasize the importance of strategically positioning in fundamentally strong stocks amid a still-challenging macroeconomic environment.

Investors gained N510 billion in two trading sessions, marking a red-letter day for the Nigerian capital market and setting the stage for future opportunities.