Equities Extend Rally, Gain ₦1.91trn
Nigeria’s stock market sustained its rally on Monday, August 31, 2026, adding ₦1.91 trillion in value and closing August with only a marginal -0.4% loss.
The rally followed FTSE Russell’s confirmation of Nigeria’s reclassification from “Unclassified” to “Frontier Market” status, which has boosted investor sentiment since August 27. The NGX All-Share Index rose 1.20% to 244,199.39 points, while market capitalisation climbed to ₦157.74 trillion. Year-to-date returns strengthened to 56.93%.
Trading activity was robust, with 606.19 million shares exchanged, turnover surging 29.56% to ₦38.70bn, and deal count rising 39.17% to 53,471. Market breadth improved, with 43 gainers against 16 losers.
Top gainers included Omatek (+10%), Ikeja Hotel (+9.95%), Sovereign Trust Insurance (+9.94%), SUNU Assurances (+9.86%), and Royal Exchange (+9.09%). Losers were led by Abbey Mortgage Bank (-9.4%), AVA Capital (-7.7%), FTN Cocoa (-6.25%), Tantalizer (-4.98%), and Consolidated Hallmark Holdings (-4.60%).
Banking heavyweights drove the rally: ETI surged 8.98%, Access Holdings 8.81%, Nigerian Breweries 8.07%, PZ Cussons 7.86%, NGX Group 6.72%, Zenith Bank 5.29%, MTN Nigeria 4.26%, Fidelity Bank 4.17%, UBA 3.16%, and GTCO 3.10%. The Banking Index advanced 3.11%, the strongest sectoral move.
Sectoral performance was broadly positive: Banking (+3.11%), Consumer Goods (+1.72%), Oil & Gas (+1.35%), Commodities and Insurance (+0.88%). The Industrial Index was the only decliner (-0.65%).
Analysts said the rally reflects broadening investor confidence beyond selective buying seen earlier. With banking stocks leading gains and fresh inflows expected from Nigeria’s Frontier Market reclassification, momentum is likely to continue.
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Read Full Article by Hafsat Ibrahim at economicconfidential.com
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