📈 By Chinedu Okafor December 24, 2025 | Nigerian Exchange Limited
Equities on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) sustained their bullish run in the holiday-shortened trading week, with market capitalisation surging by ₦578 billion as renewed investor appetite lifted major indices across key sectors.
At the close of trading, the NGX’s total market capitalisation stood at ₦97.8 trillion, underscoring strong investor confidence despite fewer trading days. Gains in banking, consumer goods, and premium stocks were the primary drivers of the rally.
Trading Highlights
-
Volume & Value: 677.43 million shares worth ₦20.78 billion were exchanged in 27,576 deals.
-
Activity Growth: This marked a 50% jump in traded volume and a 60% rise in turnover compared to the previous session.
-
Deal Count: The number of deals fell by 17%, suggesting larger block trades dominated activity.
-
Market Breadth: Out of 128 listed equities, 29 advanced while 27 declined, closing the session with a positive breadth.
Top Gainers
-
Aluminium Extrusion Industries: +9.96% to ₦14.90
-
Austin Laz & Company: +9.81% to ₦2.91
-
Custodian & Allied Insurance: +9.69% to ₦38.50
-
First HoldCo: +9.35% to ₦50.30
Top Losers
-
Royal Exchange: -7.22% to ₦1.80
-
Champion Breweries: -6.57% to ₦15.65
-
National Salt Company: -5.36% to ₦105.05
-
Sovereign Trust Insurance: -5.28% to ₦3.77
Most Active Stocks
-
VFD Group: 191.97 million shares traded
-
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO): 63.45 million shares
-
Access Holdings: 49.77 million shares
-
First HoldCo: 45.81 million shares
In value terms, GTCO led with ₦5.59 billion worth of trades, followed by First HoldCo at ₦2.25 billion and VFD Group at ₦2.07 billion. Aradel Holdings and Zenith Bank also featured prominently among top value drivers.
Index & Sector Performance
The NGX All-Share Index rose by 895.04 points (0.59%) to close at 153,354.11. This translated to:
-
Weekly Gain: 2.61%
-
Four-Week Gain: 6.67%
-
Year-to-Date Return: 48.99%
Sectoral indices closed broadly positive:
-
Consumer Goods Index: +1.3% (YTD +119.12%)
-
Banking Index: +1.23% (YTD +36.55%)
-
Premium Index: +0.61%
-
Pension Index: +0.57%
-
Top 30 & Main Board: Both ended higher, reflecting broad-based strength.
Market Outlook
Analysts attribute the sustained rally to bargain hunting, strong earnings expectations, and portfolio rebalancing by institutional investors ahead of year-end. Despite the shortened trading week, sentiment remained upbeat, buoyed by robust liquidity and sector rotation into fundamentally strong stocks.
With equities maintaining positive momentum, market watchers expect activity to remain vibrant in the near term as investors position for dividend-paying stocks and weigh macroeconomic developments heading into the new year.