The Nigerian equity market extended its gains on Wednesday, with investors gaining ₦1.44 trillion as buying interest in major stocks, particularly Nestlé Nigeria, drove the market upward.
The market capitalization rose by 1.80% to close at ₦81.584 trillion, up from ₦80.143 trillion the previous session. The All-Share Index also climbed by 2,277.54 points to settle at 128,967.08, compared to 126,689.54 recorded earlier.
Nestlé Nigeria led the rally, surging by 10% to close at ₦1,650.00 per share. Other top gainers included Eunisell Interlinked Plc (₦14.85), Omatek Ventures (₦1.76), Secure Electronic Technology (₦1.21), and Tripple Gee (₦4.32), all posting near 10% gains.
Despite the bullish trend, market breadth closed negative, with 45 decliners outweighing 41 advancers. FTN Cocoa Processors and NPF Microfinance Bank topped the losers’ chart, both dropping 10% to close at ₦7.02 and ₦2.43, respectively. Other significant decliners were C&I Leasing (₦7.13), Champion Breweries (₦12.29), and Academy Press (₦8.33), each shedding nearly 10%.
Trading activity surged dramatically, with investors exchanging 11.67 billion shares worth ₦363.4 billion in 36,635 deals—a sharp increase from Monday’s 1.29 million shares valued at ₦32.2 billion in 39,437 transactions.
FBN Holdings dominated trading volume and value, recording 10.47 billion shares worth ₦324.5 billion. UBA followed with 157.54 million shares (₦7.62 billion), while Access Corporation traded 124.6 million shares (₦3.27 billion). Universal Insurance (124.1 million shares) and Zenith Bank (66.3 million shares) also saw notable activity.
Analysts attributed the sustained rally to renewed confidence in blue-chip stocks, predicting the upward trend could continue if macroeconomic conditions remain stable. The market’s performance reflects growing investor optimism, particularly in high-cap stocks with strong fundamentals.
