Economy
How to Begin Stock Market Trading
By Dipo Olowookere
Many times, I have been asked to explain how the stock market works and the steps needed to begin investment in that critical sector of the economy.
This article is mainly to give those interested in joining the stock market the key things they need to know before jumping on the train.
It is important to state that the stock market is highly volatile and not for those not willing to take ‘calculated risks.’
Before I continue, we need to understand what the stock market is.
The stock or equity market is a place or platform set aside for the exchange of stocks of companies admitted to trade their securities to investors.
Now, before you begin to trade stocks on the exchange, you need to acquaint yourself with the terms used. You can check this article for assistance Understanding Terms Used in Stock Market (Part 1).
To the subject matter, I will try to make things very simple as I can, though I am not a very good teacher, I must admit.
Before you jump on the train, you need to ask yourself these important questions, why do I want to invest in the stock market. Am I investing as a trader, long term investor or medium?
When you find answers to these questions, you can then look for the company that fits into your investment tenor.
Let me quickly explain the terms I just used above; trader, long term and medium-term investors.
Traders at the stock market are mainly those interested in buying stocks when they are cheap and sell immediately they hit their target price, mostly within the shortest possible time say a week or less or slightly more.
For the long-term investors, they buy stocks for the future purpose and are not after any immediate gains. These people have investment plan of 5 years or more, while those in the medium-term category invest for dividend, price appreciation, say within 3 month, 6 months or a year.
So, when you consider which of the three categories you want, you can then study the stocks that can perfectly fit and then invest.
Now on the stock buy, you have to read a lot about the performances of the companies listed on the exchange and study their trends and price movements, checking the 52-week lows and highs so as to know when to buy and sell.
In Nigeria, the banking stocks, most especially the tier-one, are good because they have good price appreciation and dividend payout.
Another thing you must also consider is the amount you’ve earmarked to invest in stocks. This will help you determine the stocks to buy.
The good thing is you don’t have to have millions or hundreds of thousands to begin stock market trading. You can have as low as N10,000 to begin with. What this means is that your amount will determine the number of units of the stock you can acquire at that particular time. If you have like N10,000 and you are interested in buying a stock selling at N50 per unit, you will only be able to get 200 units minus the brokerage fee.
This takes me to the next thing you must consider before joining the stock market; getting a good stockbroker.
You need a stockbroker, who is a professional authorised to help investors or clients buy and sell shares at the stock market.
There are several authorised stockbrokers in Nigeria. Some of them even have trading platforms where you can trade yourself. Some of them offer free trading and investment tips, suggesting which stocks you can buy, sell or hold.
However, before you choose a broker, you need to select those who charge lower brokerage fee. This is the amount they charge clients for executing your order. You pay this fee whenever you are using them to buy or sell your stocks.
Most times, they will require you to register with them and fund your account by paying to a bank account. They will help you with the creation of an account with the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS), which is like a database of all investors at the stock market.
When you buy shares through a stockbroker, your account will be credited with the volume of shares purchased and when they are sold, the number of stocks offloaded by you would be subtracted from your account. Let me just put it in a simple term, the CSCS is like your bank account.
After all these, it is important to try demo trading before the real thing. This will give you an idea of how the market works. You can use this opportunity to see if you understand stock market trading. In most cases, these demo trading platforms give you a virtual money to trade with. They make it look real, with the brokerage charges deducted.
I must confess to you, investing in stock market is fun and you need to experience it. However, like they say in a stock market group I belong to, be ready to ‘pay school fees’ to the Nigerian Stock Exchange. This simply means you must be prepared to lose some money in the stock market, but this must not discourage you because before a child starts to walk and run, he must first crawl and fall. We all have paid and are sometimes still paying.
Before I stop for now to take your questions, you must understand that there are some factors that tinker with stock prices. So, you need to watch out for these.
Now, I will be ready to take your questions.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has warned that Nigeria’s economic recovery could come under renewed pressure from persistently high borrowing costs and inflation despite stronger crude oil production and ongoing economic reforms.
In its July Monthly Oil Market Report, OPEC said Nigeria’s near-term economic outlook remains positive, supported by higher oil production, improving macroeconomic stability, stronger business activity and continued reform efforts, but cautioned that inflationary pressures and expensive credit continue to pose significant risks to sustained growth.
According to the report, Nigeria’s economy expanded by 3.9 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, marginally below the 4.0 per cent recorded in the final quarter of 2025, indicating that growth has remained close to recent highs.
“Overall, Nigeria’s near-term outlook remains positive, supported by oil production, reform progress, infrastructure investment and stronger business activity, but high inflation, elevated borrowing costs and the need to preserve exchange-rate stability remain important challenges,” OPEC stated.
The organisation noted that the non-oil sector remained the principal driver of economic expansion, with agriculture, manufacturing, construction, trade, finance and insurance contributing significantly to growth.
It added that improved crude oil production had strengthened government revenues, boosted foreign exchange inflows and reinforced the country’s external reserves.
“The non-oil economy continues to provide the main support, with activity driven by agriculture, manufacturing, construction, trade, and finance and insurance, while higher oil output has improved fiscal revenues, foreign-exchange inflows and external buffers. Survey indicators also point to continued near-term momentum,” the report added.
OPEC also pointed to private sector data showing continued expansion in business activity. It said the Stanbic IBTC Bank Nigeria Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) moderated slightly to 53.4 in June from 54.1 in May but remained above the 50-point threshold, indicating sustained growth in economic activity.
According to the report, stronger output, increased new orders and resilient consumer demand continued to support business expansion, although manufacturing activity softened slightly during the review period.
The oil producers’ group further noted that increased domestic refining capacity, particularly the improved fuel supply from the Dangote Refinery, is expected to strengthen energy availability and ease pressure on imports.
“Higher domestic refining capacity, including improved fuel supply from the Dangote refinery, should continue to support energy availability and reduce some import-related pressures,” OPEC said.
Despite the positive outlook, the organisation expressed concern over rising consumer prices, noting that Nigeria’s inflation rate increased to 15.9 per cent in May from 15.7 per cent in April as food prices continued to weaken household purchasing power.
“Inflation rose further to 15.9 per cent year-on-year in May, up from 15.7 per cent in April, with food prices still putting pressure on household purchasing power. This means that monetary policy is likely to remain cautious, despite improved exchange-rate stability and stronger oil-related inflows,” the report stated.
OPEC said the persistence of inflation is likely to keep monetary policy tight, meaning borrowing costs may remain elevated even as improved oil earnings continue to strengthen Nigeria’s fiscal position and external reserves, adding that balancing price stability with economic growth will remain a key challenge for policymakers in the months ahead.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc bested three price decliners to lift the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.05 per cent on Thursday, July 16.
The securities depository company gained N2.29 during the trading day to close at N92.64 per share compared with the previous day’s price of N90.35 per share.
As a result, the market capitalisation of the bourse grew by N1.42 billion to N2.592 trillion from N2.590 trillion, while the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 2.36 points to 4,318.87 points from 4,316.51 points.
The three price losers yesterday were led by 11 Plc, which shed N10.00 to end at N240.00 per unit versus Wednesday’s closing value of N250.00 per unit, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N2.34 to finish at N147.66 per share compared with the N150.00 per share it closed at midweek, and Food Concepts Plc depleted by 7 Kobo to settle at N2.42 per unit, in contrast to the preceding day’s N2.49 per unit.
A look at the activity chart showed that during the session, the value of transactions soared by 43.3 per cent to N104.1 million from the preceding session’s N65.2 million, and the number of deals jumped by 39.3 per cent to 39 deals from the 28 deals completed a day earlier, while the volume of trades contracted by 75.7 per cent to 1.2 million units from 4.8 million units.
When trading activities ended for the day, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc led the activity chart as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 74.9 million units exchanged for N5.3 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira further appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, July 16, by 65 Kobo or 0.04 per cent to sell for N1,381.53/$1, in contrast to Wednesday’s closing value of N1,382.18/$1.
This was buoyed by improved FX liquidity to absorb the high demand for Dollars during the trading session.
However, the local currency depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday by N9.48 to close at N1,866.17/£1 versus the preceding day’s N1,856.69/£1, and lost N2.99 against the Euro to quote at N1,582.68/€1 compared with the midweek rate of N1,576.69/€1.
At the parallel market, the Nigerian currency maintained stability against its United States counterpart at N1,405/$1, and at the GTBank FX desk, it remained unchanged at N1,389/$1.
On Thursday, data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed a surge in interbank FX turnover and deal count. Interbank FX activities at the NFEM window increased sharply by 69 per cent to $205.366 million from $121.727 million reported the previous day.
Nigeria’s gross external reserves continue to rise, supported by steady foreign exchange inflows from hydrocarbon receipts, remittances and foreign portfolio investments, boosting market confidence. It settled at $51.893 billion from $51.867 billion the previous day.
The apex bank has also launched a new digital platform that will track every foreign exchange transaction involving Bureau De Change (BDC) operators, marking a major step in its efforts to improve transparency and strengthen oversight of Nigeria’s retail forex market.
In an operational guidance issued on July 15 to authorised dealer banks and licensed BDCs, the CBN introduced the FX BDC Purchase Tracker (FXBT), a centralised electronic portal that will monitor foreign exchange purchases by BDCs from the point of request through approval, settlement and eventual sale.
As for the crypto market, prices were down as the markets weighed fresh US airstrikes on Iran that boosted risk sentiment, with Ethereum (ETH) down by 4.7 per cent to $1,829.37.
Solana (SOL) decreased by 3.6 per cent to $77.49, Dogecoin (DOGE) depreciated by 3.1 per cent to $0.0718, Cardano (ADA) also crashed by 3.1 per cent to $0.1588, Bitcoin (BTC) slumped by 2.9 per cent to $62,820.21, Ripple (XRP) dipped by 2.6 per cent to $1.08, Binance Coin (BNB) fell by 2.3 per cent to $569.02, and TRON (TRX) shrank by 0.8 per cent to $0.3219, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
