The Nigerian Stock Market hit a record N162.2 trillion in market cap for the first time ever as stocks closed the week on a high.
The last time the NGX hit an all-time high was on May 13, when it hit N161.8 trillion.
Trading on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) concluded the week on a remarkably bullish note on Friday, September 18, 2026, powered by a significant wave of investor participation.
Investors aggressively exchanged a total volume of 525,991,720 shares across 44,239 distinct deals.
This intensive transactional velocity propelled the total equity market capitalization up to an N162.16 trillion, marking a substantial lift from Thursday’s close of N159.89 trillion.
Concurrently, the flagship All-Share Index extended its weekly upward trajectory to peak at 249,804.56 points.
Market activity was strongly supported by high-volume transactions concentrated within key financial infrastructure and telecommunications listings.
On the Main Board, Sterling Financial Holdings registered heavily with 41,897,646 units, alongside Wema Bank Plc, which generated an active footprint of 22,270,166 shares changing hands.
Sentiment remained strongly positive, backed by high-profile price movements from the market’s premium listings.
Despite the overarching positive market breadth, a select few high-priced stocks experienced notable downward re-ratings:
The Premium Board Banking sub-sector alone cleared 35,115,786 units across 3,391 trades, despite marginal fractional losses from anchors UBA (-0.22%) and Zenith Bank (-0.08%).
The sector experienced massive internal valuation friction. While Dangote Sugar Refinery gained +1.63%, the sector’s broader performance index was severely dragged down by heavy pullbacks from consumer staples, led by Cadbury Nigeria’s -9.32% drop and a -2.50% drop from Honeywell Flour Mill.
The market breadth for the session closed highly positive, demonstrating strong, widespread buying interest that went far beyond mere index manipulation by a handful of large-cap stocks
With 36 gaining equities outperforming 22 declining equities, the market breadth ratio prints at a bullish 1.64x.
This ratio indicates that for every stock that suffered a price retraction, roughly 1.6 stocks logged positive price advances. The underlying structural health of this bull run is confirmed by looking across small, mid, and large-cap tiers.
The positive close concludes the market’s rally for the week with the NGX All-Share Index reaching 249,804.56 points, up 1.42% from 246,315.38 points, reflecting broad-based buying interest across major stocks.
Market capitalisation reached N162.16 trillion, up 1.42% from N159.89 trillion.
Outside of the main equity boards, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) contributed a collective volume of 397,194 shares, while the debt instruments market saw soft trading with a quiet turnover of 51,151 units across the bond segment.
