Week in Nepal’s Stock Market: November 9-13

Commercial banks unveil their Q1 financials

This week, publicly listed companies released their first-quarter financial statements, offering a snapshot of corporate performance across the market. Among all sectors, banking—given its dominant influence on NEPSE—stood out, providing clear signals of the market sentiment and overall NEPSE’s direction.

The latest quarterly financials from commercial banks reveal a grim picture for the financial sector and, by broader extension, the NEPSE market. Non-performing loans (NPL) climbed up to 4.7%, up from 3.9% a year ago, signalling growing stress in loan recoveries. Net profit was also hit sharply, as it fell by (-18.79%) year-on-year, reaching NRs 13.14 billion.

Despite lower lending rates aimed at easing repayment pressure, the trend has shown little improvement. Credit demand remains sluggish, leaving banks with rising deposits but fewer areas for deployment, resulting in idle liquidity. Combined with compressed interest margins, these factors continue to weigh on banks’ profitability.

This strain was clearly visible on the market index, as the banking index fell by (-2.36%) over the week. With NPL on the rise and constrained limited capacity, investors continue to trade with caution.

New companies listed in NEPSE

Three new companies—Bungal Hydro Limited (BUNGAL), Bandipur Cablecar and Tourism Limited (BANDIPUR), and Swastik Laghubitta Bitiya Sanstha Limited (SWASTIK) were listed in the secondary market this week. Both Bungal and Bandipur were highly anticipated by investors. Strong demand was already evident during their IPO phase, with Bungal oversubscribed 11.99 times and Bandipur shares 5.87 times.

Bungal, which debuted on November 9, opened at 302.4 points, but within a week it soared (46.3%), closing at 442.5 points. On November 13, Bungal recorded a turnover of NRs 2.15 million, reflecting active investor participation.

A day later, Bandipur and Swastik entered the market with a similar upward momentum. 

Bandipur opened at 285 points, where the stocks climbed (33.05%) by the end of its first trading week, settling at 379.2 points. While its turnover value of NRs 230,274 was more modest than Bungal’s, the steady rise highlights investors’ optimism.

Swastik also posted a gain, though at a gentle pace. Opening at 391.7 points, it rose 11.97% over the week to close at 438.6 points, with a turnover of NRs 12,885. Despite the lower volume, its positive first-week movement indicated healthy early interest from investors.

This week was active on the fixed-income side as well. NEPSE listed two debenture listings, broadening its investment options beyond equities. Nabil Bank listed three million units of 7% Nabil Debenture 2089 (NABILD2089) on NEPSE, each with the face value of NRs 1,000, an 8-year maturity period, and bearing a 7% interest rate. Likewise, Shine Resunga also listed one million units of its debenture (SHINED) with a maturity period of 10 years and an interest rate of 8%, and a face value of NRs 1,000 per unit.

Looking back at last week’s new listings, the momentum shows no signs of slowing. Mabilung Energy (MABEL) opened this week at 431.1 points and climbed to a high of 567.8 points before a slight dip and closed at 543 points. Dharamkhola Hydro Energy (DHEL) followed a similar trajectory, opening this week at 451 points, climbing to a high of 558 points before a slight dip and closing at 524 points.

Sagar Distillery (SAGAR), which began with a modest debut, has captured the market’s attention with an extraordinary rally. From November 10 to 16, the stock hit its upper circuit limit for five consecutive days, consistently opening at the low and closing at the high, pushing its price from 351.4 to 565.7 points on strong volume and turnover.

That concludes this week's market review. Stay tuned to see how NEPSE trends unfold in the coming week.