Nigeria's All-Share Index Tops 201,000 Points

Nigeria's stock market achieved a historic milestone on Monday as the All-Share Index of the Nigerian Exchange crossed the 201,000-point threshold for the first time, closing at 201,474.89 points after a 1.55 percent increase from the previous session's 198,407.30 points. The surge added nearly N1.97 trillion to investor portfolios, pushing market capitalization to N129.33 trillion from N127.36 trillion and lifting the year-to-date return to 29.47 percent, with a month-to-date gain of 4.48 percent.

The bullish session reflected broad investor enthusiasm, with 38 stocks advancing against 30 decliners. Gains were widespread across major sectors, led by industrial goods, which rose 4.52 percent, followed by banking at 2.20 percent and consumer goods at 0.03 percent. The insurance sector dipped 0.43 percent amid profit-taking, while energy fell 0.08 percent due to sell-offs. Trading volume remained robust, with 948.2 million shares exchanged in 72,735 deals, valued at N49.17 billion, up significantly from the prior session's 591 million shares worth N35 billion. Financial services dominated activity, accounting for the bulk of volume and value; Sovereign Trust Insurance led in...