The Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) index edged up by 1.52 points on Wednesday, closing at 2,641.43 points, as trading turnover declined compared to the previous session.

The benchmark index gained a marginal 0.05 per cent from Tuesday’s close of 2,639.91 points, when the market had risen by 4.90 points.

Market breadth remained almost evenly split. Of the companies traded, share prices of 125 increased, while 124 declined and 11 remained unchanged. With decliners only marginally outnumbering gainers, the index managed to post a slight gain by the end of the session.

A total of 12,504,970 shares were traded through 72,671 transactions, generating a turnover of Rs6.20 billion. This marked a decline from Tuesday’s turnover of nearly Rs7 billion, indicating softer market activity.

Of the 13 sub-indices, banking, life insurance, manufacturing and processing, microfinance and the others group closed lower, while the remaining subgroups ended the session in positive territory.