The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) closed the week ended September 19, 2025, on a modestly positive note as the All-Share Index (ASI) advanced 0.92% to 141,845.35 points, while market capitalisation increased by ₦821.5 billion to ₦89.744 trillion.
The uptick was largely supported by gains in consumer goods and oil & gas stocks, even as insurance and banking counters dragged.
Market Activity
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Total Turnover: 2.735 billion shares
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Value: ₦85.20 billion
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Deals: 127,284
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Previous Week: 3.188 billion shares worth ₦99.69 billion in 132,711 deals
Critical View: Market activity slowed compared to the prior week, with both turnover volume and value declining. However, the composition of trades suggests continued investor focus on banking and ICT counters, alongside selective plays in the services sector.
Sectoral Contributions
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Financial Services: 1.909 billion shares worth ₦37.83bn in 56,026 deals (69.79% volume, 44.41% value)
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ICT: 184.87 million shares worth ₦6.19bn in 12,893 deals
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Services: 176.51 million shares worth ₦813.25m in 6,011 deals
Observation: The financial sector retained dominance but its concentration raises questions about the breadth of market liquidity, while ICT maintained relevance as a growth segment.
Top 3 Equities by Volume
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Abbey Mortgage Bank, Fidelity Bank, UBA → 875.82m shares worth ₦16.42bn in 11,389 deals
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Contribution: 32.02% of total volume, 19.27% of total value
Critical View: The heavy activity in Abbey Mortgage Bank reflects retail-driven momentum, while Fidelity and UBA highlight continued institutional appetite for banking stocks despite sectoral underperformance.
Daily Market Performance (Sept 15–19)
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Best Day: Sept 17 (1.0bn shares, ₦24.65bn value, ASI +0.35%)
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Weakest Day: Sept 18 (325m shares, ₦8.41bn value, ASI +0.16%)
Insight: Despite the weekly gain, the data shows inconsistent liquidity inflows, suggesting investors are cautious and selective in exposures.
Bonds Market
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44,730 units worth ₦46.73m traded in 41 deals (vs 24,228 units worth ₦22.24m last week)
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Key Movers: FGSUK2033S6 (₦17.79m), FGSUK2031S4 (₦11.59m)
Critical View: Bond activity nearly doubled, with stronger appetite for sovereign and FX-linked instruments, showing a hedging tilt as equities became volatile.
Indices Performance
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Gainers: Consumer Goods (+5.48% WtD, +93.93% YtD), Oil/Gas (+2.79%), Lotus II (+1.84%)
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Laggards: Insurance (–4.67%), Banking (–2.57%), Premium (–1.14%)
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Flat: ASeM
Critical View: The divergence signals sectoral rotation, with investors shifting away from financials into consumer goods and energy-related plays. Insurance posted its sharpest weekly decline, reversing months of momentum.
Market Breadth
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40 gainers (vs 70 previous week)
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41 losers (vs 22 previous week)
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66 unchanged (vs 55 previous week)
Insight: Market breadth weakened, reflecting waning bullish sentiment. The rise in decliners alongside fewer advancers suggests profit-taking dominated large-cap and mid-cap counters.
Top 10 Price Gainers
Critical View: The dominance of consumer goods (GUINNESS, UNILEVER, NB, NNFM) underscores strong investor rotation into defensives. EUNISELL and MULTIVERSE show speculative interest in industrial and energy-linked plays.
Top 10 Price Decliners
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OMATEK –18.18%
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CORNERSTONE INSURANCE –15.42%
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SECURE ELECTRONIC TECH –12.79%
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ROYAL EXCHANGE –11.30%
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UBA –9.24%
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VERITAS KAPITAL –9.09%
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SUNU ASSURANCES –8.98%
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CORONATION INSURANCE –8.57%
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NGX GROUP –8.40%
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PRESTIGE ASSURANCE –7.94%
Critical View: Insurance stocks led the laggards, confirming sectoral weakness. The presence of UBA and NGX Group among decliners is notable, highlighting profit-taking in key financial institutions despite the sector’s role in driving turnover.
Critical Summary
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ASI gained 0.92% and market cap added ₦821.5bn, closing the week at ₦89.74tn.
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Liquidity contracted, with turnover volume and value both down week-on-week.
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Consumer goods stocks drove gains, while insurance and banking indices fell sharply.
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Bond market activity nearly doubled, showing growing hedging by investors.
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Market breadth weakened, with fewer gainers and more losers compared to the prior week.
Outlook
While equities closed higher, the underlying sentiment is fragile. The divergence between consumer goods outperformance and financial sector weakness suggests sector rotation rather than broad bullish momentum.
Investors are increasingly hedging with bonds and ETFs, reflecting caution ahead of macroeconomic uncertainties.