Kathmandu, October 29

Snapping the loss of three consecutive trading days, the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) index gained 7.67 points or 0.71 per cent today. The benchmark index had surged as high as 1,097.75 points by mid-day trading before resting at 1,092.04 points by the day’s closing.

Rumours and speculations about the current crisis ending soon could have fuelled investor optimism, while the country getting the first female president might have also added to the cheer, as per analysts.

Consequently, the sensitive index added 1.94 points to 235.83 points and the float index inched up 0.45 points to 77.85 points.

While manufacturing and trading subgroups remained constant at 1,886.14 points and 207.97 points, respectively, finance was the only subgroup to record a minimal loss of 0.06 per cent to 557 points.

The hydropower subgroup led the pack of gainers, surging by 3.23 per cent to 1,948.87 points.

It was followed by others gaining 2.09 per cent to 746.02 points; hotels up 1.41 per cent to 1,779.28 points; banking up 0.58 per cent to 1,016.35 points; development banks up 0.23 per cent to 922.41 points and insurance up 0.07 per cent to 4,597.42 points.

Altogether 398,259 shares of 99 listed firms amounting to Rs 279.13 million were traded today in the country’s only secondary market through 1,892 transactions.