Political uncertainty weighs on Nepse

Benchmark index shed 13.49 points and closed at 535.31



KATHMANDU, Mar 17: Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) shed 2.41 percent or 13.49 points to close at 535.31 points on Sunday, the first day of the week´s trading amid uncertainty over the newly formed government´s economic policy and the dates for the new election.



“Investors were expecting that the slowing stock market will see significant improvement after the formation of the new government. However, anti-government protest by some opposition parties and delay in unveiling of economic agenda of the new government dampened their confidence,” Anjan Poudel, president of Stock Brokers Association of Nepal (SBAN), said.[break]



Poudel said there would be no major upheaval in the secondary market unless the government comes up with a clear roadmap to end the ongoing political impasse.

“Given the uncertainty in political scenario, the benchmark index will move between 500-550 points over the next few days,” added Poudel.



All trading groups, except Hotels, lost values on Sunday. Banking, the key trading group, saw its sub-index go down by 9.39 points to close the day´s trading at 538.9 points. Similarly, the sub-indices of Trading and Development Bank fell by 1.36 points and 0.42 points, respectively to settle at 162.89 points and 255.53 points.



Hydropower and Finance sub-indices shed 13.72 points and 0.57 points to end at 1042.56 points and 255.08 points, respectively. Likewise, the sub-indices of Insurance and Others groups went down by 6.39 points and 29.36 points, respectively and settled at 877.23 points and 734.29 points.



A total of 318,298 units of shares worth Rs 103.91 million were traded through 1,496 transactions on Sunday. Similarly, total market capitalization was recorded at Rs 519.48 billion.

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