Nepal’s share market weathers political jitters

investors were anxious on Thursday morning about how the market would perform amid speculation that a senior political leader could be arrested. Investor and analyst Ajit Khanal took to Facebook to flag Thursday’s trading as particularly sensitive, saying the market could be more volatile than usual and needed close attention. His concern stemmed from an issue that might appear unrelated to the stock market: rumours circulating since early morning that a top politician could be arrested.

The market reflected similar anxiety, falling by as much as 25 points during trading. However, it recovered some ground before the 4 pm close, limiting its loss to 12 points. This is not the first time political developments and arrests have unsettled Nepal’s share market.

Such reactions have occurred repeatedly since the Rastriya Swatantra Party assumed power. Controversial businessman Deepak Bhatta was arrested on April 2. The market reopened on April 8 after a public holiday and the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) index plunged 105 points in a single session.