NGX, Aradel drives stock market rebound

Aradel emerged as the session’s top gainer, surging 10% following the release of its FY 2024 unaudited financial results, which showcased strong performance. Other notable gainers included Chellaram (+9.98%), Stanbic IBTC (+9.92%), and UPL (+9.64%), contributing to a 0.57% rise in the NGX All-Share Index (ASI). As a result, investor wealth expanded by NGN 364.71 billion, bringing total market capitalization to NGN 64.52 trillion.
Aradel led the market in value traded, with an exchange of 10.64 million units worth NGN 6.27 billion, accounting for a remarkable 41.77% of total trade value. BUA Foods whose heavy market cap weight was second on the value chart, grossing NGN1.53 billion in value traded, although its price remained unchanged. The bullish momentum was evident across key sectors, with the Oil & Gas Index (+3.34%), Consumer Goods Index (+0.81%), and Banking Index (+0.75%) posting notable gains. The Industrial Goods Index edged up slightly by 0.01%. However, the Insurance Index faced headwinds, dragged lower by declines in Royal Exchange (-8.08%), Linkage Assurance (-6.45%), AIICO (-1.10%), and Guinea Insurance (-3.61%).
The performance of the NGXASI may have been skewed slightly by the bullish run on ARADEL after a somewhat superb 2024 FY performance report. However, a cursory look further reveals that market breadth closed down, returning 0.68x as well as the Up/ down (UD) ratio of 0.49x which depicts the volume intensity of price losers as against their gainer’s counterpart. The NASD OTC market demonstrated strong bullish momentum, with the NSI and Market Capitalization rising 3.99% and 71.92% from year-end 2024 to January 28, 2025, reflecting increased investor confidence. Trading activity surged significantly, as volume skyrocketed 3,153.79% and value jumped 78.59%, indicating heightened market liquidity and institutional participation.