The Nigerian stock market extended its bullish run on Friday, marking the third consecutive session of gains driven by renewed investor interest in mid- and low-cap equities.
Market capitalisation rose by N395 billion or 0.42 per cent to close at N94.56 trillion, up from N94.165 trillion on Thursday. Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 622.60 points to end at 148,977.64, compared to 148,355.04 in the previous session.
The positive sentiment was fueled by gains in Eunisell Interlinked, UPDC, Sovereign Trust Insurance, Universal Insurance, Daar Communications, and 34 other advancing stocks.
Eunisell Interlinked topped the gainers’ chart with a 10 per cent rise to N48.40, followed by UPDC, which appreciated by 9.92 per cent to N6.98. Sovereign Trust Insurance climbed 9.51 per cent to N3.57, Universal Insurance gained 9.09 per cent to N1.20, while Daar Communications increased by 8.74 per cent to N1.12 per share.
On the downside, Livingtrust Mortgage Bank led the losers’ table with a 10 per cent decline to N4.50, while International Energy Insurance fell 8.39 per cent to N2.73. Consolidated Hallmark Holdings shed 6.29 per cent to N4.47, Sterling Nigeria dropped 4.88 per cent to N7.80, and WAPIC Insurance declined 4.55 per cent to N3.15 per share.
Market activity showed mixed performance as trading volume improved, though deal counts and value declined. Investors exchanged 480.99 million shares worth N16.78 billion across 22,854 deals, compared to 432.4 million shares valued at N16.9 billion in 23,665 transactions on Thursday.
United Bank for Africa (UBA) led the activity chart with 59.18 million shares worth N2.48 billion, followed by Access Corporation with 50.39 million shares valued at N1.29 billion. Fidelity Bank traded 46.99 million shares worth N944.02 million, Sovereign Trust Insurance recorded 34.24 million shares valued at N120.86 million, while Tantalizer sold 24.56 million shares worth N54.53 million.
Market breadth remained positive with 39 gainers against 23 decliners, indicating sustained investor confidence heading into the new week.
