Azeez Buki 
Activities on Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) and FIRSTHOLDCO on Monday led the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to an upbeat, with the All-Share Index appreciating by 0.62%, closing at 106,698.50 points, while the market capitalisation rose by approximately N412.25 billion to N67.06 trillion, reflecting broad market optimism for the new week.
GTCO emerged as the top value driver, contributing N5.56 billion (29.35%) to the total turnover, while FIRSTHOLDCO dominated the volume chart with 18.63% share of total units traded.
The Monday NGX performance marked a continuation of the positive trajectory driven by strong investor appetite across key non-financial sectors despite weakness in banking stocks.
Consumer Goods led sector gains, up 2.90%, propelled by gains in CADBURY (9.87%), NB (8.48%), DANGSUGAR (5.71%), and INTBREW (7.50%). Insurance advanced 2.69%, supported by upward movements in GUINEAINS (7.81%), MANSARD (5.80%), and REGALINS (8.47%).
Although volume traded declined by 0.75% to 569.04mn units, indicating slightly lower participation, value traded spiked significantly by 24.12% to N18.93 billion, pointing to concentration in higher-value stocks and increased institutional activity.
BETAGLAS topped the gainers’ chart with a 9.97% increase to N120.75, supported by strong investor demand and low free float, CADBURY (9.87%) and TIP (9.90%) attracted significant buy-side interest following impressive earnings and industry tailwinds.
CAVERTON (9.77%) and MULTIVERSE (9.45%) also posted sharp gains, suggesting renewed interest in mid-cap and resource-linked stocks. The rally in these tickers indicates a rotational shift toward fundamentally undervalued and speculative momentum-driven counters.
The NASD OTC market experienced a significant decline in activity today, with daily trade volume plunging by 99.77% to just 19,920 units and total value traded dropping 94.46% to N872,687 indicating a sharp contraction in investor participation.
Despite the flat NSI at 3,289.7 points and stable market capitalisation at N1.93 trillion, the 37.5% drop in trade count suggests weakening liquidity and subdued sentiment in the OTC space.
