Nigeria’s equities market bounced back on Friday after consecutive days of losses, with investors adding N208.46 billion to the value of listed stocks as buying interest returned to some of the market’s heavyweight names.

By the close of trading on October 9, 2026, total market capitalisation on the Nigerian Exchange had climbed from N161.05 trillion on Thursday to N161.26 trillion. The All Share Index rose by 321.05 points, or 0.13 per cent, to settle at 248,363.55 points, recovering from the weekly low of 248,042.50 points it touched a day earlier.

Telecoms giant MTN Nigeria led the charge among the large caps, gaining 2.69 per cent, or N22, to finish at N840. Oil and gas firm Oando was the standout mover, jumping 6.90 per cent to N36.40. Cement and building materials company CAP also pushed higher, rising 8.50 per cent to N108.50, while Unilever Nigeria gained 2 per cent to N102 and Nigerian Breweries added 0.81 per cent to close at N74.60.

The gains showed up across the sector indices. The oil and gas index moved from 5,996.24 to 6,005.98, the consumer goods index edged up from 4,026.79 to 4,033.36, and the industrial index inched from 10,440.33 to 10,442.50. The NGX 30 and the Premium index also closed higher.

Participation was thin, however. Volume fell by about 34.5 per cent to roughly 322 million shares, while the value of trades dropped 46.1 per cent to N20.50 billion. Zenith Bank was the most actively traded stock with 31.69 million shares, followed by GTCO, Access Holdings and Fidelity Bank. Analysts described the session as modestly bullish but cautious, with the recovery coming on subdued activity.

Friday’s gain did little to repair the week’s damage. The market still ended the week lower, with the All Share Index down 0.97 per cent and about N1.58 trillion wiped off market value, trimming the year to date return to 59.60 per cent from 61.17 per cent a week earlier.