Investors gain N3.45trn as Airtel, Aradel lift NGX rally

Equities investors gained approximately ₦3.45 trillion on Wednesday as renewed buying interest in heavyweight stocks extended the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) bullish run, pushing the market capitalisation to ₦155.59 trillion.

The rally was driven by strong gains in Airtel Africa, Aradel Holdings and Fidelity Bank, which lifted the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) by 2.27 per cent to 242,459.98 points, while the market’s year-to-date return strengthened to 55.81 per cent, up from 52.35 per cent in the previous trading session.

Airtel Africa led the gainers’ chart with a 10.00 per cent appreciation, followed by Fidelity Bank, which advanced 9.97 per cent, and Aradel Holdings, which gained 8.68 per cent. The gains outweighed losses recorded by CWG (-5.24 per cent), Dangote Sugar (-1.39 per cent) and AIICO Insurance (-1.71 per cent).

Trading activity was mixed as the volume of shares traded rose by 5.02 per cent to 518.43 million units, while the value of transactions declined by 18.80 per cent to ₦22.75 billion.

LASACO Assurance emerged as the most actively traded stock by volume, with 56.60 million shares, while Aradel Holdings topped the value chart after recording transactions worth ₦4.20 billion.

Market breadth remained positive at 1.33 times, with 32 gainers against 24 losers, reflecting sustained investor demand for equities.

HMCALL posted the steepest decline of the session, shedding 9.95 per cent.

Meanwhile, the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) market also closed on a bullish note, with the NASD Security Index (NSI) rising 6.84 per cent to 4,250.20 points, lifting market capitalisation to ₦2.55 trillion.

However, activity on the OTC platform weakened significantly as traded volume fell 50.91 per cent to 158,933 shares, while transaction value declined 31.87 per cent to ₦10.85 million across 31 deals.

In the foreign exchange market, the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) recorded a marginal depreciation of the naira, with the official exchange rate weakening by 0.24 per cent to close at ₦1,379.07/$, compared with ₦1,375.75/$ in the previous session.

Analysts attributed the continued equities rally to sustained institutional demand for fundamentally strong stocks, particularly in the telecommunications, energy and banking sectors, while noting that the slight weakening of the naira reflects ongoing adjustments in the foreign exchange market.