WED APRIL 22 2026-theGBJournal| Nigeria’s equity market extended its bullish run Wednesday, as aggressive bargain-hunting in heavyweight banking and hospitality stocks lifted the benchmark index, reinforcing investor optimism about earnings resilience and market liquidity.
At the same time, the naira posted a notable gain in the official window, signaling improving sentiment in the foreign exchange market and hinting at a gradual return of stability after recent volatility.
Bargain-hunting activities in FIRSTHOLDCO (+8.5%), TRANSCOHOT (+10.0%), and UBA (+6.0%) spurred a 0.6% increase in the All-Share Index to close at 219,586.91 points. As a result, the Month-to-Date and Year-to-Date returns settled higher at +8.4% and +41.1 %, respectively.
Market capitalisation also increased by 0.61% to settle at N141.38 trillion.
The total volume traded fell by 18.9% to 683.68 million units, valued at NGN36.17 billion, and exchanged in 51,694 deals. FIRSTHOLDCO was the most traded stock by volume and value at 76.64 million units and NGN5.78 billion, respectively.
Sectoral performance was broadly positive as the Banking (+2.0%), Insurance (+1.1%), Consumer Goods (+0.4%) and Industrials Goods (+0.2%) indices advanced while the Oil and Gas index closed flat.
As measured by market breadth, market sentiment was positive (1.1x), as 30 tickers gained relative to 27 losers. TRANSCOHOT (+10.0%) and VITAFOAM (+10.0%) led the gainers, while NEIMETH (-10.0%) and ABBEYBDS (-9.9%) led the laggards.
At the NASD OTC Market, bullish sentiment was also sustained, as the NASD Securities Index (NSI) advanced by 0.88% to close at 3,969.96 points. Accordingly, market capitalisation rose by the same margin to settle at N2.38tn.
Market activity strengthened significantly, with total volume and value traded advancing sharply by 11,468.89% and 708.05%, respectively.
On the performance table, SDCSCSPLC (+5.01%) emerged as the top gainer, while there were no decliners for the session.
Meanwhile, the official FX rate appreciated by 0.8% to N1,340.00/US$, a meaningful move, particularly in the context of persistent FX pressures.
This strengthening suggests a combination of improved dollar supply—possibly from increased foreign portfolio inflows, stronger oil receipts, or policy-driven liquidity injections—and a moderation in speculative demand.
More importantly, the appreciation aligns with the bullish sentiment in equities
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