Industrial, Oil & Gas Stocks Lead Rally As Equities Market Gains N7.25trn In October

The Nigerian equities market extended its bullish momentum for the seventh consecutive month, as the market gained N7.248 trillion in October, 2025.

This performance was driven by strong demand for blue-chip stocks in the oil & gas, industrial, and consumer goods sectors amid impressive corporate earnings releases and improving macroeconomic outlook.

The market capitalisation gained N7.248 trillion from N90.581 trillion at the beginning of the month of October to close at N97.248 trillion at the end of October 31, 2025. Similarly, the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 8.00 per cent from 142,710.48 on September 30, 2025 to 154,126.46 points on October 31, 2025. As a result, year-to-date return improved to 49.7 per cent.

Across the sectors, performance was largely positive as all indices gained save for the Banking index, which lost 3.2 per cent month-on-month. Leading the gainers, the Industrial Goods and Oil & Gas indices gained 17.5 per cent and 15.4 per cent in October. The NGX Consumer Goods, and Insurance indices were higher by 4.8 per cent, and 3.4 per cent month-on-month sequentially.

Investor sentiment, as measured by market breadth, improved as 55 stocks gained, 58 lost, while 31 remained unchanged. Aso Savings & Loans led the gainers table by 106 per cent to close at N1.03, per share. Eunisell Interlinked followed with a gain of 49.40 per cent to close at N59.00, while Sovereign Trust Insurance went up by 30.00 per cent to close to N3.90, per share.

On the other side, Living Trust Mortgage Bank led the decliners table by 34.3 per cent to close at N4.00, per share. John Holts followed with a loss of 32.10 per cent to close at N5.40, while Thomas Wyatt Nigeria declined by 30.70 per cent to close at N3.97, per share.

The managing director and chief executive officer, APT Securities and Funds Limited, Kasimu Garba Kurfi, projected that the market capitalisation is expected to surpass the N100 trillion mark by the end of 2025, buoyed by foreign exchange stability, strong corporate fundamentals, and increased primary market activities.

Kurfi identified key drivers of the 2025 market rally, including the elimination of foreign exchange-related losses by companies.

He pointed out that, in 2024, listed firms posted pre-tax FX losses of N507.2 billion, up from N359 billion in 2023, representing a combined N867 billion in losses, saying that “in 2025, we have seen zero FX losses due to exchange rate stability, and this has significantly boosted investor confidence.”

The APT Securities boss said the signing of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA 25) has triggered a rally in insurance stocks, while the CBN’s bank recapitalisation programme has revived the primary market, attracting over N2 trillion in 2024, with similar volumes anticipated in 2025.

On market outlook, analysts at Afrinvest Limited said, “we expect the market to sustain its positive momentum in November, supported by continued interest in fundamentally sound tickers amid resilient corporate earnings. However, we note that intermittent profit-taking activities could drive mild volatility in the month.”