MON JULY 06 2026-theGBJournal| Nigeria’s equities market opened the week on a bullish note, with the benchmark Nigerian Exchange (NGX) extending its gains as heavyweight stocks including FIRSTHOLDCO, WAPCO and DANGCEM lifted the market, while the naira strengthened slightly in the official foreign exchange market.
In contrast, the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) market began the week on a weaker footing, posting declines in both its benchmark index and market capitalisation amid subdued trading activity.
The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) and market capitalisation advanced by 2.15% to settle at 234,178.23 points and N150.27 trillion, respectively.
The rally lifted the market’s year-to-date return to 50.49%, up from 47.31% recorded in the previous week.
Positive investor sentiment was driven by gains in stocks such as FIRSTHOLDCO (+10.00%), WAPCO (+7.53%) and DANGCEM (+8.08%), which outweighed losses recorded in VITAFOAM (-10.00%), NAHCO (-10.00%) and ZENITHBANK (-1.64%).
Trading activity also strengthened during the session, with total traded volume rising by 29.88% to 538.64 million units, while the value of transactions climbed by 54.17% to N38.70 billion.
ZENITHBANK (-1.64%) dominated both the volume and value charts, with 89.46 million units of shares worth N9.77 billion exchanged.
Market breadth remained firmly positive at 4.14x, reflecting stronger buying interest across the market.
A total of 58 stocks closed higher, led by FIRSTHOLDCO (+10.00%), while 14 stocks declined, with NAHCO (-10.00%) topping the losers’ chart.
Meanwhile, the NASD OTC market opened the week on a bearish note, as the NASD Security Index (NSI) declined by 1.63% to close at 4,236.97 points.
Market capitalisation also fell by 1.63% to N2.54 trillion, bringing the year-to-date return to 19.56%.
Trading activity on the NASD market weakened significantly, with total traded volume falling by 93.58% and the value of transactions declining by 98.28%. A total of 114,175 shares valued at N2.76 million were exchanged across 18 deals.
On the NASD performance chart, SDIGIPLC (+9.09%) led the three gainers, while SDCSCSPLC (-11.06%) topped the decliners’ chart during the session.
In the foreign exchange market, the official naira exchange rate appreciated by 0.2% to close at N1,371.00 per U.S. dollar.
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