Nigerian Exchange Limited investors recorded a N390 billion gain on Wednesday as bullish sentiment pushed market capitalization to N130.404 trillion, up from N130.014 trillion the previous day. The All-Share Index rose 562.44 points, or 0.28 percent, closing at 202,585.54, improving the year-to-date return to 30.19 percent.
The rally was driven by the release of full-year 2025 financial results from listed companies and the market’s reaction to FTSE Russell’s confirmation that Nigeria will return to frontier market status from its former “unclassified” position in September. Analysts say the reclassification could attract additional inflows from global tracker funds and exchange-traded funds benchmarked to the FTSE Frontier Index.
Despite the overall gain, market breadth closed negative, with 32 decliners outpacing 22 advancers. Top losers included UPDCredit, which fell 10 percent to N6.75, Fortis Global Insurance down 9.92 percent to N1.18, and Deep Capital Management shedding 9.85 percent to N5.40. CHAMS and JaPaul Gold also posted significant losses.
On the upside, Universal Insurance led gainers with a 10 percent rise to N1.21, followed by Omatek Ventures up 9.78 percent to N2.47 and VFD Group gaining 9.71 percent to N11.30. Computer Warehouse Group and Livestock Feeds also posted strong gains.
Trading activity eased, with total volume down 12.64 percent to 1.01 billion shares worth N40.57 billion in 52,723 deals. Access Corporation was the most active by volume at 232.98 million shares, while Zenith Bank led by value at N6.47 billion.
The rebound underscores growing investor confidence following improved corporate earnings and the anticipated boost from Nigeria’s reclassification as a frontier market, which is expected to enhance the country’s attractiveness to international capital.
