NEPSE gains 45.88 points as banking stocks lead rally

KATHMANDU: The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) saw a positive performance on Wednesday, with the index rising by 45.88 points to reach 2,715.71 points.

This marked a 1.71 percent increase, with a total of 11.386 million shares worth NPR 5.55 billion being traded.

In total, 211 companies saw their share prices increase, while 29 companies experienced a decline.

The share prices of 3 companies remained unchanged. A total of 308 companies were traded, with 56,350 transactions taking place.

While NEPSE closed higher, all sectors except mutual funds posted gains.

Mutual funds, however, fell by 0.34 percent, ending the day at 21.63 points.

The commercial bank sector saw the largest increase, rising by 3.43 percent to 1,452.83 points.

The microfinance sector had the smallest gain, rising by 0.42 percent to 4,974.34 points.

Other notable sector performances included a 1.63 percent increase in both development banks and finance companies, a 1.05 percent rise in hotels and tourism, a 1.96 percent gain in hydropower, and a 0.79 percent rise in the investment sector.

Life insurance climbed by 1.07 percent, production and processing by 0.60 percent, non-life insurance by 1.03 percent, while the “other” sector grew by 0.57 percent. Trading companies saw a 1.56 percent rise.