Oil and Gas Sector Leads Nigerian Stock Market with 17.6% Gain
The oil and gas sector emerged as the top performer on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) last week, recording a substantial gain of 17.59 per cent. This surge was primarily fueled by strong price appreciation in key stocks such as Aradel, Japaul Gold, and Seplat, reflecting robust investor confidence in the energy sector.
Banking and Consumer Goods Sectors Also Show Strong Performance
Following closely, the banking index advanced by 11.85 per cent, driven by sustained buying interest in ETI, Stanbic IBTC, and FirstHoldco. This indicates continued investor appetite for fundamentally strong and liquid counters in the financial sector. Additionally, the consumer goods sector posted a solid increase of 7.76 per cent, underpinned by sustained participation in Uniondicon and Guinness, highlighting positive market sentiment across diverse industries.
The industrial goods sector recorded a modest gain of 1.26 per cent, supported by price appreciation in Wapco and Dangote Cement. However, the insurance sector experienced a slight depreciation of 0.04 per cent, largely due to sell-offs in Wapic and International Energy Insurance, showcasing mixed performance across different market segments.
Market Capitalization Rises by N8.7 Trillion
Consequently, the all-share index (ASI) advanced by 6.56 per cent week-on-week to settle at 217,131.54 points. Market capitalization increased by 6.6 per cent to N139.83 trillion, translating to a gain of approximately N8.67 trillion. This represents a significant improvement from the N1.36 trillion recorded in the prior week, with the year-to-date return strengthening to 39.53 per cent, reflecting sustained positive market momentum.
Market breadth closed positive at 1.7x, with 61 gainers compared to 36 decliners, indicating broad-based buying interest across the market. Trading activity remained robust during the week, with the number of deals, volume traded, and total value traded rising by 10.82 per cent, 6.77 per cent, and 28.67 per cent week-on-week, respectively. In total, investors exchanged 3.59 billion shares valued at N195.69 billion across 255,283 deals, signaling increased market participation and liquidity.
Expert Outlook on Market Trends
On the market outlook, Chief Research Officer of Investdata Consulting Limited, Ambrose Omordion, stated that the Nigerian equities market is likely to sustain its bullish momentum in the near term. This is driven by continued liquidity inflows, improving investor sentiment, and supportive oil price trends. He noted, however, that gains could begin to moderate as investors engage in profit-taking and as mixed macroeconomic signals weigh on the pace of the rally.
Omordion advised investors to adopt a selective approach, focusing on fundamentally sound stocks with strong earnings visibility and attractive dividend yields, while avoiding the temptation to chase momentum-driven rallies. According to him, short-term corrections may offer more compelling entry opportunities. He added that global factors, particularly developments in the oil market and geopolitical environment, will remain key drivers of sentiment, while domestic economic indicators and policy direction will also play a critical role in shaping market performance in the sessions ahead.
