Economy
Stock Market Gains N140bn as Trading Volume Rises 146.19%
By Dipo Olowookere
Transactions at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) further ended bullish on Wednesday with a 0.76 per cent growth.
Investors showed renewed interest in the stock market, especially in shares in the consumer goods, banking and insurance sectors, resulting in the 3.78 per cent growth, 1.86 per cent rise and 1.63 per cent jump in their respective indices, while selloffs were witnessed in the energy and industrial goods counters, causing 0.33 per cent decline and 0.17 per cent fall in their respective indices.
However, the poor performance of the two sectors did not affect the All-Share Index (ASI), which increased at the midweek session by 267.93 points to 35,493.15 points from 35,225.22 points, while the market capitalisation went up by N140 billion to settle at N18.551 trillion in contrast to N18.411 trillion it ended on Tuesday.
Business Post reports that the trading volume rose significantly yesterday by 146.19 per cent following the 650.5 million shares traded by market participants in contrast to the 264.2 million shares transacted the previous session.
However, there was a 22.39 per cent in the trading value to N2.3 billion from the N3.0 billion achieved a day earlier and a 9.23 per cent drop in the number of deals to 3,952 deals from 4,354 per cent.
It was observed that the huge increase in the trading volume on Wednesday was buoyed by the 415.0 million units of Jaiz Bank worth N217.0 million transacted at the session, emerging as the most stock.
Axa Mansard traded 22.3 million shares for N17.2 million, Zenith Bank exchanged 19.3 million equities valued at N472.7 million, SAHCO transacted 19.0 million stocks for N50.6 million, while Access Bank transacted 15.8 million shares valued at N130.4 million.
The market breadth further closed positive at the midweek session with 26 price gainers as against the 13 price losers recorded, indicating a positive investor sentiment.
Nestle Nigeria was the highest price riser as a result of the N105 added to its equity value, closing at N1505 per unit and was trailed by Flour Mills, which gained N1.80 to close at N26.50 per share.
Zenith Bank appreciated by 60 kobo to sell at N24.10 per unit, Guinness Nigeria gained 60 kobo to finish at N18.60 per share, while GTBank chalked up 40 kobo to end at N33.95 per unit.
On the flip side, Lafarge Africa suffered the heaviest loss with a price depreciation of 50 kobo to close at N22 per unit.
United Capital went down by 14 kobo to N4.40 per share, Dangote Sugar declined by 10 kobo to N17.90 per unit, Oando depreciated by 10 kobo to N2.80 per share, while Northern Nigerian Flour Mills decreased by 7 kobo to N6.13 per share.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
HBM Nigeria Plc, formerly Lafarge Africa Plc, recorded a 31 per cent surge in revenue in the first half of 2026 by 31 per cent as a result of an 11 per cent jump in volume growth, enhanced operational stability and improvement in distribution efficiency.
Also, in the first six months of this year, the cement maker grew its operating profit by 51 per cent to N291 billion after sustained efficiency gains across the business, while operating margin soared to 43 per cent from 37 per cent in H1 2025, with the net profit increasing by 57 per cent to N208 billion.
HBM Nigeria is a leading provider of innovative building solutions and manufacturer of a wide range of cement, ready mix, mortar and Plaster of Paris brands.
“Our H1 2026 performance demonstrates the continued strength of our business and the successful execution of our strategic priorities. These results reflect disciplined cost management, operational excellence, and prudent financial stewardship.
“We are focused on further improving supply reliability, advancing our cost leadership agenda, driving innovation, accelerating our sustainability initiatives, and maintaining the highest standards of health and safety,” the chief executive of HBM Nigeria, Mr Lolu Alade-Akinyemi, disclosed.
He assured that the cement firm would remain focused on building on a strong operational momentum by leveraging the industrial and technical expertise of Huaxin Building Materials Ltd to drive operational excellence and improve efficiency across the business.
In light of this, HBM Nigeria has commenced the engineering design for its third production line at Calabar, a state-of-the-art 3-million-ton integrated cement facility. The project is progressing through the requisite development processes, with completion expected within 12 months following commencement of construction.
On HBM Nigeria’s business outlook for the rest of the year, Mr Alade-Akinyemi said, “Nigeria’s demand outlook for cement remains positive, supported by ongoing infrastructure development, urbanisation, and resilient activity across the construction sector, despite a dynamic global operating environment.”
“As macroeconomic conditions continue to improve, we expect demand across our key market segments to remain supportive of sustainable growth.
“We plan to continue focusing on capturing volume growth opportunities while maintaining disciplined cost management and operational excellence to strengthen profitability and preserve margins.
“The company remains well positioned to create sustainable long-term value for its shareholders and all stakeholders by leveraging its resilient operating platform, a strong balance sheet, and disciplined execution of strategic priorities,” he stated.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The management of Africa Prudential Plc has charted five strategic priorities to drive the company’s growth through the second half of 2026.
These goals were announced by the organisation at its investor call, attended by various stakeholders in the capital market.
Addressing participants at the call on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, the chief executive of Africa Prudential, Ms Catherine Nwosu, said one of these priorities is delivering sustainable business growth through core registrar and new business lines.
She listed others as accelerating product and service innovation leveraging technology, strengthening Africa Prudential’s brand equity and market leadership, investing in talent development and organisational capability, and deepening corporate governance and institutional excellence.
At the event, a key question from investors focused on the company’s ability to sustain earnings growth in an environment where interest rates may begin to moderate.
In her response, Ms Nwosu said, “Interest rates influence our treasury income positively, but that is why we are deliberately diversifying our revenue streams. Our strategy is to grow recurring fee-based business lines such as our digital solutions, KYC services, AGM technology, Probate services, and the SabiVest mobile app. Over time, this will reduce our reliance on interest income and create a more balanced and resilient earnings mix.”
“With capital market activity nearly doubling over the past year, demand for seamless digital investor experiences, improved market efficiency, and stronger compliance standards continues to grow.
“We are investing in technology-enabled solutions that position us to capitalise on these opportunities while delivering sustainable value to our shareholders,” she added.
In the first half of 2026, Africa Prudential, a leading provider of share registration services and capital market solutions, reported another strong performance, demonstrating strong corporate governance and resilience, and the effectiveness of its growth strategy despite an evolving macroeconomic environment.
Its gross earnings grew by 27 per cent to N4.28 billion from N3.34 billion in the same period of the previous year, while net operating income rose by 27 per cent to N4.21 billion.
In H1 2026, profit before tax soared by 22 per cent to N2.41 billion, while the profit after tax surged by 18 per cent to N1.59 billion, with total assets expanding by 13 per cent to N46.53 billion, and shareholders’ fund also up by 13 per cent to N12.52 billion.
It was observed that the impressive results were driven by sustained growth in the company’s core registrar business, increased corporate action activities across the Nigerian capital market, stronger treasury performance supported by the prevailing interest rate environment, and increasing adoption of Africa Prudential’s technology-enabled solutions.
Beyond the numbers, management reaffirmed Africa Prudential’s strategic evolution from a traditional registrar into a diversified technology and business solutions company serving the broader capital market ecosystem.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The 7th Africa Emerging Markets Forum has commenced in Abuja, Nigeria, with critical stakeholders in the financial services and other industries in attendance.
The programme commenced today, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, and will end tomorrow, Thursday, July 30, 2026.
It is taking place at the headquarters of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Abuja.
The hybrid forum is themed Building Resilience Amidst Geoeconomic Uncertainties. It brings together distinguished policymakers, economists and development leaders to explore practical solutions for strengthening Africa’s resilience in an increasingly complex global economy.
Speaking at the conference are the CBN Governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso; the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele; and the chief executive of Emerging Markets Forum, Mr Harinder S. Kohli.
The organisers have provided an avenue for those unable to attend the programme physically to catch up with it via their social media platforms, including on the YouTube channel of the central bank.
