CAPITAL MARKET PERFORMANCE AND NIGERIA’S ECONOMIC GROWTH

Abstract

This study examined the impact of capital market performance on economic growth in Nigeria, emphasizing key indicators such as foreign direct investment (FDI), all share index (ASI), and market capitalization (MC).The Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model was used to analyze the data on study variables for the period obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin (2024) 1993-2023 to examine the short- and long-term relationships between capital market activities and gross domestic product (GDP).The findings revealed that while FDI and ASI exhibited positive but statistically insignificant relationships with GDP, MC demonstrated a negative and insignificant relationship, suggesting inefficiencies in the Nigerian capital market's contribution to economic growth. The study identified structural gaps, low market integration and inefficiencies as critical barriers limiting the capital market's potential 
to drive economic growth. The study recommended strengthening market infrastructure, enhancing regulatory frameworks, promoting investor confidence, and increasing the capital market's integration with the broader economy to maximize its impact.  
Keywords: All Share index, Foreign direct investment, Market capitalization