Market Update For July 9, 2026
The Nigerian equities market extended its bullish momentum on Thursday, July 9, 2026, as sustained institutional buying in banking heavyweights and renewed interest in selected telecommunications, consumer goods and aviation stocks pushed the benchmark index to another all-time high. The positive close marked another session of robust investor confidence, with bargain hunters taking advantage of fundamentally attractive stocks amid expectations of stronger corporate earnings and an improving macroeconomic environment.
The market maintained its upward trajectory throughout the trading session as investors continued to rotate funds into fundamentally sound large and medium-cap stocks. Banking counters remained the clear market leaders, accounting for the bulk of buying interest, while investors also accumulated quality stocks across the telecommunications, consumer goods, industrial and services sectors. The sustained inflow of funds into blue-chip equities underscores confidence in Nigeria’s equity market despite heightened geopolitical risks in the global economy.
The financial services sector continued to dominate market activity, with FIRSTHOLDCO, ZENITHBANK, ACCESSCORP, GTCO and FCMB attracting strong institutional demand. Investors appeared to be positioning ahead of the release of half-year corporate earnings, with expectations that most Tier-1 banks will deliver resilient earnings supported by higher interest income, stronger balance sheets and improved profitability following recent economic reforms.
Telecommunications giant MTNN also remained one of the market’s major drivers after attracting renewed buying interest, while gains in HONEYWELL FLOUR, Nigerian Breweries, Dangote Sugar, NAHCO and CHAMS reflected increasing demand for stocks with attractive growth prospects and relatively strong fundamentals. The broad participation across sectors suggests that investors are gradually expanding their exposure beyond banking stocks in search of value opportunities.
The sustained bullish sentiment also reflects growing optimism over Nigeria’s macroeconomic outlook. Improved foreign exchange market stability, easing inflation expectations, stronger external reserves and ongoing fiscal and monetary reforms have continued to support investor confidence, encouraging both institutional and retail investors to increase exposure to domestic equities. Market participants are also anticipating improved dividend yields and stronger earnings performance in the second half of the year.
The significant increase in trading volume further reinforced the strength of the current rally. Unlike speculative-driven advances, Thursday’s gains were backed by substantial liquidity, indicating continued institutional accumulation rather than short-term trading activity. Such developments continue to strengthen the market’s technical outlook and suggest that smart money remains active in the equities market.
Outside the domestic market, investors also monitored developments in the international oil market. Crude oil prices retreated after recent gains as traders assessed the latest escalation in tensions between the United States and Iran. Brent crude declined 1.4% to $76.90 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 1.6% to $72.32 per barrel. The decline came as markets evaluated the impact of renewed military exchanges and concerns over shipping activities through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic route that accounts for roughly 20% of global oil supplies.
Despite Thursday’s decline, crude prices remained close to their highest levels since late June, reflecting lingering fears of supply disruptions. For Nigeria, relatively elevated oil prices continue to provide support for government revenue, foreign exchange earnings and fiscal stability. However, prolonged geopolitical tensions could increase volatility across commodity and financial markets, requiring investors to remain cautious.
The domestic market, however, continued to decouple from global uncertainty as investors focused primarily on company fundamentals, earnings expectations and attractive valuations. This resilience demonstrates the growing depth of Nigeria’s capital market and sustained confidence in listed companies capable of delivering long-term shareholder value.
Technical Analysis and Outlook
Technically, the Nigerian equities market remains firmly in a bullish trend, with the NGX All-Share Index continuing to record higher highs and higher lows. Thursday’s rally was supported by exceptionally strong trading volume, confirming that the market’s advance is being driven by genuine institutional accumulation rather than speculative buying. The Money Flow Index remains elevated, indicating sustained liquidity inflows into equities, while the positive market breadth signals healthy participation across sectors.
The banking sector continues to provide leadership for the broader market, while improving participation in consumer goods, industrial, telecom and services stocks suggests sector rotation is becoming more balanced. This broad-based participation is considered a positive technical signal because it reduces dependence on a handful of heavyweight stocks and strengthens the sustainability of the ongoing rally.
Although the market remains overbought on some short-term technical indicators following consecutive sessions of gains, the prevailing momentum suggests that any near-term pullback could be temporary and may provide fresh entry opportunities for medium- and long-term investors. As long as the benchmark index sustains trading above the 242,000-point psychological support level, the bulls are expected to retain control of market direction.
Going forward, investors will closely monitor the commencement of half-year earnings releases, corporate actions, dividend announcements, movements in the fixed-income market, foreign portfolio participation and developments in the foreign exchange market. These factors are expected to shape trading sentiment in the coming sessions.
The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) appreciated by 0.62% to close at 243,958.73 points, compared with 242,459.98 points recorded in the previous session. Consequently, investors gained approximately N961.75 billion, while the market’s year-to-date return improved to 56.77%. Market breadth closed positive at 29 gainers against 24 losers, highlighting sustained buying momentum across the market. INTBREW and FIRSTHOLDCO topped the gainers’ chart with 10.00% appreciation each, followed by HONYFLOUR (+9.68%), NAHCO (+8.84%), MTNN (+3.85%), ZENITHBANK (+3.29%), ACCESSCORP (+2.46%), CHAMS (+2.33%), NB (+2.04%), FCMB (+1.89%), DANGSUGAR (+1.41%), TIP (+0.98%), UCAP (+0.57%), ZICHIS (+0.27%), GTCO (+0.24%), TRANSCORP (+0.12%), alongside other advancing equities. The losers’ chart was led by GEREGU, followed by TRIPPLEG, OMATEK, CWG, MULTIVERSE, RTBRISCOE, SOVRENINS, MECURE, UNILEVER, LAFARGE AFRICA (WAPCO), REGALINS, GUINEAINS, BERGER, ABBEYBDS, SUNUASSUR, VFDGROUP, CUTIX, ROYALEX, ETERNA, TANTALIZER, DEAPCAP, ACADEMY, LASACO and LINKASSURE. Trading activity remained exceptionally strong as total volume surged 219.47% to 1.66 billion shares valued at N111.96 billion exchanged in 44,727 deals. FIRSTHOLDCO emerged as the most actively traded equity with 1.26 billion shares worth N85.61 billion, representing 75.98% of the day’s total volume and 76.47% of total value traded. ZENITHBANK and ACCESSCORP accounted for 2.65% and 2.48% of traded volume respectively, while ZENITHBANK and MTNN ranked behind FIRSTHOLDCO in value traded, reaffirming the dominance of banking and telecom stocks in Thursday’s market performance.
