Nigeria’s equities market ended the third trading day of the week on a positive trajectory, as bullish sentiment returned to the local bourse, pushing the benchmark All-Share Index (ASI) up by 0.50% to close at 120,339.90 points on Wednesday, July 2, 2025.
This represents a 598.67-point increase from Tuesday’s close of 119,741.23 points.
The market capitalization followed suit, rising by ₦378.98 billion to settle at ₦76.18 trillion, up from ₦75.80 trillion the previous day.
The rally was powered by strong performances in heavyweight stocks such as International Breweries Plc (+7.91%), Lafarge Africa Plc (+3.03%), and Zenith Bank Plc (+1.69%).
This upward movement lifted the year-to-date (YTD) return on the ASI to +16.92%, while market capitalization’s YTD growth now stands at a robust +21.38%.
Investor participation surged significantly, with total volume traded nearly doubling by 99.10% to 1.05 billion units, while value traded climbed 7.95% to ₦12.17 billion, executed across 21,964 deals.
Royal Exchange Plc topped the volume chart with 218.70 million units, while Wema Bank Plc led in terms of value traded, with transactions worth ₦1.07 billion.
The market breadth was firmly in positive territory, with 61 stocks advancing against 16 decliners, indicating a broad-based rally.
Among the top gainers, C & I Leasing Plc advanced by 10.00%, rising from ₦4.60 to ₦5.06. Cutix Plc also gained 10.00%, climbing from ₦3.60 to ₦3.96. Similarly, Ellah Lakes Plc posted a 10.00% increase, moving from ₦8.40 to ₦9.24.
On the flip side, Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc was the day’s biggest laggard, dropping by 9.09% from ₦1.10 to ₦1.00. John Holt Plc followed with a 5.41% loss, falling from ₦7.40 to ₦7.00. Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc shed 5.32%, declining from ₦47.00 to ₦44.50.
Sectoral performance was mixed, reflecting rotation and profit-taking across different industries.
The Insurance Index led the gainers with a +3.3% jump. Industrial Goods and Oil & Gas sectors advanced +2.2% and +1.5% respectively, buoyed by renewed investor interest.
Conversely, the Consumer Goods Index saw a steep decline of -22.3%, driven largely by losses in major consumer names.
The Banking Index also slid by -15.2%, despite positive showing from Zenith Bank, as other lenders came under pressure.
Victoria Ibanga
