· External reserves rise for two straight months, hit $51.74bn, Up 38.6% Y-o-Y
· Naira closes at N1,379.60/$ at official, N1,430/$ at parallel markets
Nume Ekeghe and Kayode Tokede
The Nigerian stock market gained N9.3 trillion in one week as renewed foreign investor confidence buoyed by S&P Dow Jones Indices’ decision to place Nigeria on its 2027 watchlist for a potential return to Frontier market status triggered increased demand for blue-chip stocks.
The rally came amid sustained regulatory reforms aimed at improving market transparency, integrity and accessibility, prompting foreign and high-net-worth investors to increase their positions in fundamentally strong companies.
Equally, Nigeria’s external reserves have continued its steady rise, increasing uninterrupted for two months to reach $51.74 billion as of July 9, 2026, reflecting stronger foreign exchange inflows and an improvement in the country’s external position.
THISDAY findings from the stock market showed that the likes of Dangote Cement, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Aradel Holdings Plc, Airtel Africa Plc gained significantly this week as the market capitalisation of listed companies on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) closed for trading at N156.547 trillion, which was a N9.3 trillion or 6.4 per cent increase compared with the N155.586 trillion it opened for trading.
Consequently, the NGX All Share Index closed for trading this week at 243,798.76 basis points, a growth of 14,558.42 or 6.35 per cent increase from 229,240.34 basis points the market opened for trading.
Key market indices also gained significantly in the week under review. Specifically, the NGX Industrial Goods Index led the chart with 10.46 per cent WoW to close at 10,713.01 basis points.
The likes of NGX Banking Index gained 4.78 per cent WoW to close at 2,149.14 basis points, while NGX Oil & Gas Index advanced by 8.11 per cent WoW to close at 5,255.03 basis points.
The MD/CEO, Globalview Capital Limited, Aruna Kebira, in a chat with THISDAY, stressed that investors were taking position ahead of second quarter ended June 30, 2026 corporate earnings.
S&P Dow Jones Indices had stated that its potential reclassification of Nigeria was based on the improvements in the country’s regulatory environment and market integrity.
The decision, announced in S&P DJI’s annual Country Classification Watchlist recently released, positions Nigeria among markets under formal review for a possible change in classification next year.
While the announcement does not constitute an immediate upgrade, it signalled that the country’s recent regulatory and structural reforms were gaining recognition from one of the world’s leading index providers.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s external reserves have continued its steady rise, increasing uninterrupted for two months to reach $51.74 billion as of July 9, 2026, reflecting stronger foreign exchange inflows and an improvement in the country’s external position.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the reserves grew from $48.32 billion on May 6, 2026, to $51.74 billion as at July 9, 2026, representing an increase of $3.42 billion, or 7.1 per cent, over the two-month period.
The latest figure also represented a significant improvement from the $37.33 billion recorded on July 9, 2025. This translates to a year-on-year increase of $14.41 billion, or 38.6 per cent, underscoring the steady rebuilding of Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves over the past year.
The sustained rise in reserves comes amid ongoing reforms in the foreign exchange market, improved investor confidence and stronger foreign currency inflows.
In the meantime, the naira closed the week on a mixed note, recording a marginal depreciation at the official market as well as the parallel market.
At the NFEM, the local currency closed at N1,379.60/$1 yesterday, compared with the N1,378.40/$1 it closed on Thursday, representing a marginal decline.
The parallel market also recorded a modest depreciation during the week. The naira, which traded at about N1,420/$1 at the beginning of the week, weakened by N10 to close at N1,430/$1 yesterday.
