The Nigerian stock market closed lower in mid-week trading on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, reversing the previous session’s gains as profit-taking in selected large- and mid-cap stocks outweighed buying interest following the recent market rally.
The benchmark NGX All-Share Index (ASI) decreased by 1.02% to close at 249,062.37 points, down from 251,635.42 points recorded in the prior session. Consequently, market capitalisation lost N1.62trn, while the market’s year-to-date (YTD) return moderated to 60.05%, reflecting a pause in bullish momentum.
The negative performance was primarily driven by selloffs in heavyweight and mid-cap counters, with notable declines recorded in BUACEMENT(-10.00%), CAP(-9.99%), FIRSTHOLDCO(-4.04%), UACN(-3.68%), OANDO(-3.13%), IKEJAHOTEL(-2.56%), NGXGROUP(-2.47%), GTCO(-0.48%), NB(-0.48%), ACCESSCORP(-0.39%), and 15 others.
Despite the negative market close, underlying sentiment was positive, with 41 gainers against 25 decliners, indicating that profit-taking in heavyweight counters provided the primary support for the benchmark index even as broader market gains emerged.
ZICHIS topped the gainers’ chart, while BUACEMENT led the decliners. Meanwhile, LEARNAFRCA traded above its 52-week high at N13.05.
The Proshare Memorandum Indexes closed bearish, with the market cap-weighted index down 1.99% to 1,538.27 points from 1,569.56 points in the previous session, while the total return float-adjusted index was down 0.77% to 1,068.74 points from 1,077.07 points.Stocks & Bonds
Volume and Value Contribution
Market activity was down for the day, with total volume traded declined 14.74% to 600.22m, valued at N32.72bn across 58,958 deals.
ACCESSCORP recorded the highest volume with 55.96m units traded, accounting for 9.32% of the day’s volume, while ZENITHBANK recorded the highest value at N4.81bn, accounting for 14.69% of the value traded for the day.
JAPAULGOLD and ZENITHBANK accounted for 8.31% and 6.11% of total volume, respectively, while ARADEL and MTNN followed ZENITHBANK in traded value.
NASD OTC Exchange – Unlisted Equities
Conversely, the unlisted NASD Securities Index (NSI) closed bullish today, up 0.32% to 4,171.19 points from 4,157.75 points on Tuesday.
The total volume traded declined to 2.29m valued at N334.15m, across 34 deals.
At the close of trading, the NASD OTC recorded two (2) gainers and two (2) losers.
AFEX Commodity Prices
The AFEX Commodity prices on Wednesday, Paddy rice, and Sorghum increased by 1.43% and 1.42%, respectively, to close at N443.75 and N427.07, while soybeans fell by 0.01% to close at N731.33. Click here to access more data on AFEX commodity prices.
Global Commodity Prices
In the global commodity market, Gold and Silver increased by 0.19% and 1.77%, respectively, to close at US$4,488.73 and US$73.79. Brent and WTI crude futures fell 4.08% and 3.76%, respectively, to close at US$106.74 and US$100.23 as of 02:31 PM GMT on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump again asserted that the Iran war will end “very quickly”, though investors remain wary about the outcome of peace talks as disruption to Middle Eastern supply continues.
Currency / FX Market
The average BDC rate closed flat at N1,395/USD, while the NFEM rate appreciated by 0.04% from N1,373.87/USD to N1,373.34/USD.
Source: NGX, Proshare