Bullish Breeze Before the Big Decision: NGX Gains N613bn in One Week
Last week, the Nigerian stock market staged a strong rally, adding a whopping ₦613 billion in market capitalization in just five trading sessions. This boost in investor wealth came just ahead of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for May 19–20, 2025.
What Drove the Market Rally?
• Easing Inflation: Nigeria’s April 2025 inflation rate declined to 23.71%, bringing some relief to both businesses and consumers. This drop in inflation renewed investor optimism, especially with hopes that the CBN might introduce growth-supportive policies in its upcoming meeting.
• Strong Q1 Corporate Earnings: Robust first-quarter 2025 results from many listed firms further boosted market sentiment, reinforcing confidence in the earnings strength of key sectors.
• GDP Anticipation: Market players are also keeping a close eye on the forthcoming Q1 2025 GDP data, expecting it to reflect signs of economic resilience.
Key Market Metrics
• All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 0.9%, closing the week at 109,710.37 points.
• Market Capitalization surged to ₦68.95 trillion.
• Year-to-Date Return climbed to 6.59%, signaling sustained positive momentum in 2025.
Sectoral Performance
• Consumer Goods led sector gains, rising 4.08%, driven by investor appetite in stocks like Champion Breweries, NNFM, Honeywell Flourmills, and May & Baker Nigeria.
• Insurance followed with a 2.47% gain.
• Banking added 1.19%, reflecting continued interest in financial stocks.
• Oil & Gas gained 0.66%, while the Industrial and Commodity indices posted modest gains of 0.13% and 0.14%, respectively.
⚠️ Slower Trading Activity
Despite the bullish sentiment, trading activity dipped:
• Volume traded: 2.606 billion shares (↓1.66%)
• Value traded: ₦63.785 billion (↓17.32%)
• Deals: 77,593 (↓10.15%)
This slowdown points to a quiet trading environment, though market breadth remained strong:
61 gainers vs 31 losers, indicating a breadth ratio of 1.97x — a healthy signal of broad investor participation.
Expert Insights
• Ambrose Omordion (Investdata) noted that current price corrections may offer strategic entry points for long-term investors, especially as fund managers rebalance their portfolios ahead of more earnings reports and dividend announcements.
• Cowry Asset Management projected continued bullish momentum, fueled by expectations of a rate cut and a generally favourable macroeconomic backdrop. They advised sticking with fundamentally strong stocks with good earnings potential and undervalued prices.
Sector Breakdown by Activity
• Financial Services: Led the week with 1.54 billion shares, worth ₦28.9 billion (59.08% of volume).
• Services Industry: 286.8 million shares worth ₦1.7 billion.
• Consumer Goods: 202.565 million shares worth ₦7.4 billion.
Top three stocks by volume:
• FCMB Group
• Access Holdings
• Tantalizer Plc
Together, they accounted for 600.7 million shares worth ₦6.6 billion, or 23.05% of weekly trading volume.
In summary: The Nigerian stock market is heading into the week on solid footing, with investor sentiment running high. While trading volume dipped slightly, the overall tone remains optimistic as investors position ahead of major economic data releases and the CBN’s critical policy decision.
Last week, the Nigerian stock market staged a strong rally, adding a whopping ₦613 billion in market capitalization in just five trading sessions. This boost in investor wealth came just ahead of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for May 19–20, 2025.
What Drove the Market Rally?
• Easing Inflation: Nigeria’s April 2025 inflation rate declined to 23.71%, bringing some relief to both businesses and consumers. This drop in inflation renewed investor optimism, especially with hopes that the CBN might introduce growth-supportive policies in its upcoming meeting.
• Strong Q1 Corporate Earnings: Robust first-quarter 2025 results from many listed firms further boosted market sentiment, reinforcing confidence in the earnings strength of key sectors.
• GDP Anticipation: Market players are also keeping a close eye on the forthcoming Q1 2025 GDP data, expecting it to reflect signs of economic resilience.
Key Market Metrics
• All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 0.9%, closing the week at 109,710.37 points.
• Market Capitalization surged to ₦68.95 trillion.
• Year-to-Date Return climbed to 6.59%, signaling sustained positive momentum in 2025.
Sectoral Performance
• Consumer Goods led sector gains, rising 4.08%, driven by investor appetite in stocks like Champion Breweries, NNFM, Honeywell Flourmills, and May & Baker Nigeria.
• Insurance followed with a 2.47% gain.
• Banking added 1.19%, reflecting continued interest in financial stocks.
• Oil & Gas gained 0.66%, while the Industrial and Commodity indices posted modest gains of 0.13% and 0.14%, respectively.
⚠️ Slower Trading Activity
Despite the bullish sentiment, trading activity dipped:
• Volume traded: 2.606 billion shares (↓1.66%)
• Value traded: ₦63.785 billion (↓17.32%)
• Deals: 77,593 (↓10.15%)
This slowdown points to a quiet trading environment, though market breadth remained strong:
61 gainers vs 31 losers, indicating a breadth ratio of 1.97x — a healthy signal of broad investor participation.
Expert Insights
• Ambrose Omordion (Investdata) noted that current price corrections may offer strategic entry points for long-term investors, especially as fund managers rebalance their portfolios ahead of more earnings reports and dividend announcements.
• Cowry Asset Management projected continued bullish momentum, fueled by expectations of a rate cut and a generally favourable macroeconomic backdrop. They advised sticking with fundamentally strong stocks with good earnings potential and undervalued prices.
Sector Breakdown by Activity
• Financial Services: Led the week with 1.54 billion shares, worth ₦28.9 billion (59.08% of volume).
• Services Industry: 286.8 million shares worth ₦1.7 billion.
• Consumer Goods: 202.565 million shares worth ₦7.4 billion.
Top three stocks by volume:
• FCMB Group
• Access Holdings
• Tantalizer Plc
Together, they accounted for 600.7 million shares worth ₦6.6 billion, or 23.05% of weekly trading volume.
In summary: The Nigerian stock market is heading into the week on solid footing, with investor sentiment running high. While trading volume dipped slightly, the overall tone remains optimistic as investors position ahead of major economic data releases and the CBN’s critical policy decision.