Nigerian Stock Market Operations Overview
The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), formerly known as the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), is a marketplace where licensed stockbrokers trade the shares, stocks, and securities of publicly traded corporations.
Therefore, investors from all over the world, not only those with links to Nigeria, trade (buy and sell) assets during the designated trading hours on the Nigerian Exchange.
Best Time to Trade on the NGX
Opportunities to do business, make investments and expand one's financial standing are many in today's Nigeria because of the country's robust and expanding economy.
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NGX) is the second largest exchange in Africa, operating from 09h30 am to 2h20 pm from Mondays to Fridays.
Investing is essential in Nigeria if you want your money to grow and stay pace with inflation, especially considering that money loses purchasing power due to inflation.
Over the years, technological advancements have made investing in Nigerian stocks much easier, and as a result, the country's stock market has attracted a sizable number of investors.
The Nigerian Stock Exchange is only open for 4 hours and 20 minutes, while other markets typically operate between 5 to 7 hours daily.
Most smaller markets have shorter operating periods that compress the trading activity into a smaller period for increased liquidity, tighter spreads, and more efficient markets.
The shorter trading time also means that there is decreased volatility as material news that is published could increase the prices of shares drastically and quickly. With shorter operating hours, the news will happen outside the NGX’s regular trading hours.
This provides Nigerian investors more time to digest the information, allowing them to make more well-informed investing and trading decisions.
When comparing the Nigerian Stock Exchange’s operating hours with that of prominent exchanges around the world, it will look like this:
| Exchange | Operating Hours GMT | Operating Hours WAT |
| London Stock Exchange | 8 am – 4h30 pm | 9 am – 5h30 pm |
| New York Stock Exchange | 2h30 pm – 9 pm | 3h30 pm – 10 pm |
| Tokyo Stock Exchange | Midnight – 6 am | 1 am – 7 am |
| Johannesburg Stock Exchange | 7 am – 3 pm | 8 am – 4 pm |
| Nigerian Stock Exchange | 9 am – 1h20 pm | 10 am – 2h20 am |
There are a few crucial trading hours when different exchanges overlap, such as the NGX and LSE between 9 am – 1h20 pm GMT, and the JSE and NGX between 9 am and 1h20 pm.
Before making any transactions, make sure you know the precise GMT and WAT time in the nation where the exchange is based and consider any time changes due to daylight saving time. However, if you want to make the most of your efforts, it is important to time your trades appropriately.
These times often occur at the opening and closing times when the market is very liquid and volatile. However, you should not attempt to make a large profit in the first half an hour after the Nigerian stock market opens for the day.
However, when that early flurry of activity dies down a little, there is still volatility to be caught, and that is when you can try your hand at making a profit. Spreads are lower when liquidity is strong, therefore taking advantage of this circumstance is already a money-saver.
