Stock market extends bullish trend as investors gain N687bn

The Nigerian stock market sustained its bullish run on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, as investors gained N687 billion amid continued buying interest in key equities.

The positive sentiment was driven by strong performances in high-capitalised stocks, including BUA Cement, Premier Paints, Zenith Bank, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company, and RT Briscoe.

Market capitalisation rose by 0.54 per cent, increasing from N129.329 trillion to N130.026 trillion at the close of trading.

The All-Share Index also advanced by 1,084.68 points, or 0.54 per cent, from 201,474.89 to 202,559.57, while the market breadth closed positive, recording 39 gainers and 34 losers.

BUA Cement led the gainers with a 10 per cent rise to N326.70, while Premier Paints gained 9.89 per cent to close at N23.40.

Zenith Bank rose by 7.91 per cent to N111.15 per share, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company increased by 7.14 per cent to N175.60, and RT Briscoe also gained 6.67 per cent, closing at N11.20 per share.

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On the losers’ chart, Presco declined by 10 per cent to close at N1,875.60, Caverton Offshore Support Group fell by 8.70 per cent to N6.30, while Secure Electronic Technology dropped by 7.69 per cent to N1.20 per share.

Guinea Insurance shed 6.43 per cent to close at N1.31, and International Breweries declined by 6.35 per cent to N14 per share.

The market activity increased, with total traded volume rising by 84.75 per cent to 1.75 billion shares valued at N88.10 billion.

The transactions were executed across 62,654 deals during the trading session.

FCMB recorded the highest volume, with 516.23 million shares traded, accounting for 29.47 per cent of the day’s total volume.

Zenith Bank posted the highest value, with trades worth N18.10 billion, representing 20.55 per cent of the day’s total value.

The Star