The Nigerian All-Share Index closed the first trading week of March 2026 in positive territory, rising 4,141.37 points to 196,968.15, driven mostly by a surge in oil and gas stocks.
This represents a 2.15% gain for the week, despite softer trading activity, with total market volume declining to 3.6 billion shares from 5.4 billion shares recorded in the previous week.
Market capitalization, however, mirrored the upward price movement, rising by 2.16% to N126.4 trillion, with a total of 370,980 deals executed on the exchange during the week.
In terms of market breadth, 44 stocks gained in price, up from 32 gainers recorded in the previous week. On the downside, 58 equities declined compared with 69 in the prior week, while 46 stocks closed the week unchanged.
What the data is saying
According to trading data, the index’s weekly advance lifted its year-to-date return to 26.58%, with the market recording gains in four of the five trading sessions during the week.
- Most of the weekly momentum came on Monday when the index surged by over 2,687.5 points, before adding 0.57% on Tuesday and slipping slightly by 0.08% on Wednesday.
- Although trading softened in the remaining sessions, the market maintained its upward trajectory and closed the week at 196,968.1 points.
The NGX Premium Index advanced 2.76%, supported by gains in Lafarge Africa (+5.00%), Dangote Cement (+4.62%), MTN Nigeria (+3.95%), and Zenith Bank (+2.20%).
The NGX 30 Index and NGX Main Board Index also recorded strong performances during the week, rising by 2.36% and 2.00% respectively.
Sectoral performance
The NGX Oil & Gas Index led sectoral performance, rising 9.43%, driven by strong gains in Eterna (+28.72%), Aradel Holdings (+19.96%), and Oando (+18.90%).
Following closely was the NGX Industrial Goods Index, which advanced 3.89%, supported by heavyweight Lafarge Africa (+5.00%), Dangote Cement (+4.62%), and BUA Cement (+2.74%).
The NGX Banking Index recorded a modest 0.24% gain, with Stanbic IBTC up 9.02%, Zenith Bank rising 2.20%, GTCO adding 1.71%, and Wema Bank climbing 0.74%.
On the downside, the NGX Consumer Goods Index declined by 0.09%, while the NGX Insurance Index slipped 1.88% during the week.
Top Gainers
- The top-performing stocks for the week were:
- Fortis Global Insurance Plc: up 58.51% to N1.49
- Premier Paints Plc: up 32.73% to N14.60
- Eterna Plc: up 28.72% to N42.35
- Nigerian Exchange Group Plc: up 21.73% to N150.95
- UACN Plc: up 20.63% to N115.80
- Custodian Investment Plc: up 20.44% to N81.90
- Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc: up 20.36% to N2.66
- Aradel Holdings Plc: up 19.96% to N1,300.40
- Oando Plc: up 18.90% to N49.70
- UH Real Estate Investment Trust: up 9.96% to N76.15
Top Losers
- The week’s worst-performing stocks included:
- McNichols Plc: down 24.44% to N6.40
- Mecure Industries Plc: down 18.92% to N61.50
- Multiverse Mining and Exploration Plc: down 18.72% to N18.45
- Jaiz Bank Plc: down 18.45% to N10.30
- Omatek Ventures Plc: down 15.38% to N2.20
- Africa Prudential Plc: down 15.32% to N15.20
- Cutix Plc: down 13.39% to N3.30
- Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc: down 12.66% to N72.45
- AXA Mansard Insurance Plc: down 10.33% to N16.50
- Chams Holding Company Plc: down 10.00% to N4.05
Corporate actions overview
The week featured a wave of corporate disclosures across the market, reflecting strategic updates from several listed companies.
- Africa Prudential, NASCON Allied Industries, United Capital, and Champion Breweries all reported their FY2025 financial results.
- NGX Group appointed a new Group Chief Strategy Officer, Ms Olajumoke Olaniyan.
- UnionDiconSalt Plc disclosed that it has been unable to reach its 40% majority shareholder.
- Dangote Sugar and Tantalizers published their audited financial statements for 2025.
- FCMB Groupsignalleda possible delay in publishing its 2025 audited financial results.
- Linkage Assurance received SEC approval for its N16.26 billion rights issue.
- Vitafoamshareholders approved a N3.75 billion dividend payout.
- TotalEnergiesforecast a N1.3 billion Q2 profit, expecting operating costs to shrink.
What you should know
The All-Share Index’s 2.15% weekly gain signals strengthening bullish momentum as the market edges closer to the 197,000 threshold.
- The increase was not reflected in overall market activity, as trading volume declined during the week.
- Oil and Gas stocks accounted for a significant share of the market’s upward movement.
Further gains in large-cap counters could push the index closer to the 200,000 threshold in the near term.
