Strong NGX domestic stock trading pushes 18-month turnover to N17.7 trillion, outperforming foreign portfolio investments.
Domestic investors continued to tighten their grip on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), driving 82.31% of all market activity over the last 18 months.
According to NGX portfolio investment reports, total trading reached N21.5 trillion between January 2025 and June 2026. Local investors generated N17.724 trillion of that total, while foreign investors accounted for N3.809 trillion.
Put simply, for every N100 traded on the exchange during this period, local investors accounted for roughly N82 highlighting the widening gap between domestic and foreign participation.
While foreign institutional involvement has ticked up over the past year, domestic investors consistently outpaced their overseas counterparts throughout the 18-month stretch.
In 2025, domestic transactions totaled N9.276 trillion, accounting for 77.79% of the market’s total N11.924 trillion turnover, while foreign trades filled the remaining 22.21% (N2.64 trillion).
However, while foreign participation showed signs of recovery in 2025, that momentum cooled in the first half of 2026 as local investors ramped up their market activity.
For instance, between January and June 2026, domestic transactions surged to N8.44 trillion, representing 87.93% of total market turnover.
Foreign transactions accounted for just N1.16 trillion, or 12.07% of total trading over the same period.
While foreign investors remained active in the Nigerian stock market, they failed to keep pace with local investors, whose activity surged dramatically in the first half of 2026.
Over the entire 18-month period, domestic transactions outpaced foreign trades by N13.915 trillion trading at roughly 4.7 times the volume of foreign investors.
This massive gap underscores the growing influence of Nigerian institutional investors, pension fund managers, and retail traders, proving that the stock market’s recent rally was powered almost entirely by local capital rather than foreign capital flows.
While foreign investors built a visible presence in 2025 reaching 22.21% of total market activity that momentum stalled in 2026. A rapid surge in domestic trading squeezed the foreign market share down to 12.07% in the first half of the year.
Market analysts note that this shift highlights the expanding power of local investors. Domestic capital continues to provide vital liquidity, absorb new stock offerings, and sustain market momentum, even as foreign investors remain hesitant toward emerging and frontier markets.
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Eric Akinduro, former president of the Ibadan Zone Shareholders Association of Nigeria, described the rise of local investors as a positive shift. He noted that the market was once overly reliant on foreign capital, leaving it vulnerable to sharp downturns whenever offshore investors pulled out.
He added that stronger local participation ensures long-term market stability, as domestic investors are far more likely to stay committed through changing economic cycles.
