The Nigerian equities market concluded the week ended March 13, 2026, on a bullish trajectory, with the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) advancing to an all-time high of 198,407.30 points.
This represents a weekly gain of approximately 0.73%, extending the year-to-date return to 27.50%. Total market capitalization reached ₦127.36 trillion, reflecting sustained investor interest despite a slight decline in overall turnover compared to the previous week.
The market rally was primarily driven by significant price appreciation in the Industrial and Consumer Goods sectors. BUA Cement Plc emerged as a major catalyst, recording a 20.00% weekly surge to close at ₦270.00. This movement significantly bolstered the NGX Industrial Index, which outpaced other sectoral indices with a 7.09% gain.
In the consumer goods segment, Guinness Nigeria Plc and University Press Plc (UPL) both achieved a maximum daily appreciation of 10.00% on the final trading day, ending the week at ₦385.00 and ₦5.50 respectively.
Royal Exchange Plc also featured prominently among the top gainers, matching the 10.00% appreciation mark to close at ₦1.87.Banking and telecommunications stocks provided additional support to the index.
MTN Nigeria (MTNN) saw a price increase to ₦779.10, while Zenith Bank and Lafarge Africa (WAPCO) recorded gains of 3.01% and 4.85% respectively during the week’s final sessions.
These gains effectively neutralized losses in other heavyweights, such as Dangote Cement, which dipped by 1.86% to close at ₦794.90.Trading activity remained concentrated in high-liquidity tickers.
First Holdco Plc led the volume charts with over 70.8 million shares traded, followed closely by Access Holdings (ACCESSCORP) with 67.1 million shares.
In terms of value, MTN Nigeria and Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) dominated the market, accounting for a substantial portion of the ₦164.85 billion total weekly turnover.
The broader market sentiment was positive, characterized by a market breadth of 1.75x, indicating that gainers significantly outnumbered decliners.
While the Insurance sector faced downward pressure, losing 4.59% over the five-day period, the overarching trend remains anchored by strong performances in the industrial and Tier-1 banking sectors.
This market update provides context on the 2026 growth trends and the drivers behind the Nigerian Exchange reaching these record valuation levels.
Source : Nairametrics
