NEPSE Inches Upward with 7-Point Gain Despite Massive 35% Slump in Trading Volume

The NEPSE index closed nearly 7 points higher this week, ending at 2,745.65 points. This represents a marginal increase of 0.25% (6.93 points) from the previous week's close of 2,738.72. Throughout the five trading days, the market ended in the green for three days and saw declines during the remaining two. Other major indices, including the Sensitive, Float, and Sensitive Float indices, also recorded slight gains.

Despite the rise in the overall index, trading activity slowed down significantly. The average daily turnover dropped by 35.34%, falling from 5.29 billion rupees last week to 3.42 billion rupees this week. The average daily volume of shares traded and the total number of transactions also saw sharp declines of 34.91% and 46.91%, respectively. Meanwhile, the total market capitalization grew by 11 billion rupees, reaching 4.682 trillion rupees by the end of the week.

Sectoral performance was mixed, with 10 out of 13 sub-indices posting gains. The 'Others' sub-index led the percentage gains with a 1.60% rise, while 'Hotel and Tourism' saw the highest point-wise increase. On the downside, the 'Development Bank' sub-index fell by 1.50%, the highest percentage drop among all sectors, and 'Manufacturing and Processing' lost the most points. In terms of individual stocks, Jhapa Energy emerged as the top gainer with a 17.65% increase, while Corporate Development Bank saw the largest decline of 15.17%. Additionally, 3.35 million bonus shares from Citizen Investment Trust and Support Microfinance were listed on the exchange this week.