NGX ASI rises 1.20% on final August trading day

The Nigerian Exchange Limited concluded August on a robust note, with the All-Share Index (ASI) surging 1.20% on the final trading day. This increase brought the index's year-to-date return to 56.93%, despite profit-taking and portfolio rebalancing that marked the month's overall trading. The rally helped reduce August's cumulative decline to just 0.44%, preserving the bourse's impressive annual gains following strong performance in the first seven months of the year.

Investor demand during the final trading session was notably high, particularly in mid- and small-cap companies. Equities such as Ikeja Hotel Plc, SUNU Assurances Nigeria Plc, and Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc experienced significant buying interest, signaling a renewed market appetite entering September. Trading activity saw a sharp uptick, with total transaction value rising 29.65% to N38.66bn on August 31, compared to the previous session's N29.82bn.

This was driven by 606.13 million shares exchanged in 53,364 deals. The month's total equity market capitalization closed at N157.74trn, showing a slight 0.37% decrease from N158.33trn at the end of July, though its dollar valuation expanded from $115.72bn to $118.34bn.

Experts predict that the equity market will continue to trend positively in the coming weeks. This optimism is primarily based on anticipated portfolio adjustments ahead of Nigeria's official index reclassification. Nigeria is set to be reclassified from "Unclassified" back to "Frontier Market" status by the market open on September 21, 2026, following global index provider FTSE Russell's confirmation.

This reclassification was initially downgraded by FTSE Russell in 2023 due to severe foreign exchange illiquidity and capital repatriation bottlenecks. However, recent central bank reforms, improved currency market liquidity, clearing of dividend backlogs, and the adoption of a shorter T+1 settlement cycle have all contributed to the index provider's decision to restore Nigeria's classification.