Nigerian Exchange jumps 16.60% in February as oil & gas lead 4 other sectors

The Nigerian Exchange enjoyed an impressive run in February 2026, climbing 16.60% to close at 192,826.8 points and moving ever closer to the key 200,000 milestone.

Tracked by the All-Share Index, the surge marks a third straight month of gains since November 2025’s dip and stands as the strongest monthly performance since the 35.28% rally of January 2024.

Over the month’s four trading weeks, the market closed the first three in positive territory, surging past 194,000 in the penultimate week before a mild 1.11% decline brought the index back to 192,826.8.

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So far this year, the market is up 23.91%, with over 36 billion shares traded, driven mainly by strong buying interest in industrial, oil and gas, and banking heavyweight stocks.

**What the trading data is saying **

Trading data from the Nigerian Exchange shows the NGX Oil and Gas sector led February’s performance, rising 33.63% to close at 4,060.7 points.

Having started the month at 3,038.8 points, this represents a 1,021.9-point gain, with market volume exceeding 1.6 billion shares.

• Heavyweight stocks driving the rally included Aradel (38.94%) and Seplat (35.82%).
• In the mid-cap space, Japaul Gold surged 58.20%, while Eterna rose 6.65% and Oando gained 3.21%, contributing to the sector’s overall strong performance.

The NGX Industrial Goods sector followed, climbing 22.20% to break the 7,000-point barrier for the first time, closing at 7,314.6 with over 559 million shares traded.

• The surge was led by large-cap cement stocks, including Lafarge (27.39%), Dangote Cement (22.68%), and BUA Cement (19.67%).
• Other counters supporting broader gains included Chemical & Allied (25.85%), Berger Paints (23.33%), Beta Glass (18.69%), Austin Laz (18.21%), and Cutix (4.38%).

Beyond Oil & Gas and Industrial Goods, other sectors also posted solid performances, reflecting broad-based market strength.

**Other sector performance **

The NGX Banking sector was the third-best performer, rising (16.67%) to close at 1,892.1 points, with over 7.6 billion shares changing hands.

• Among tier-one banks, Zenith Bank (27.36%), First HoldCo (19.89%), GTCO (18.18%), Access Holdings (17.26%), and UBA (10.16%) recorded solid gains.
• Tier-two banks also contributed, with Jaiz Bank (57.88%), FCMB (25.23%), Sterling (16.44%), Wema Bank (15.38%), Stanbic IBTC (12.96%), and Fidelity Bank (7.26%) performing well.

The NGX Consumer Goods sector followed, rising (6.51%) with over 1 billion shares traded, led by mid-cap stocks, while Nigerian Breweries (1.46%) was the only heavyweight to gain.

• Major performers included Nascon Allied Industries (44.69%), Nestle Nigeria (43.93%), McNichols (33.39%), PZ Cussons (28.57%), Dangote Sugar (27.62%), Vitafoam (26.93%), Unilever (21.67%), and Honeywell Flour (2.48%).

The NGX Insurance sector was the weakest performer, up just 2.31% to 1,359.9, led by Universal Insurance (23.33%), AXA Mansard (15.80%), Lasaco Assurance (15.67%), and Mutual Benefits (13.64%).

**What to know **

The All-Share Index is inching closer to the 200,000 threshold, and further rallies in large-cap stocks could push it higher.

• February 2026 was the market’s best-performing month since January 2024.
• Mid-cap stocks drove most gains in the Consumer Goods sector, while a resurgence in large-cap counters may benefit the broader index.

The market is currently overbought across major timeframes and could witness a retracement, which investors might capitalize on.

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