The Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) index surged by 38.52 points on Tuesday, the final trading day ahead of the elections.

The benchmark index increased by 1.44 percent to close at 2,707.12 points, with share prices of most listed companies posting gains.

Of the traded companies, share prices of 254 firms advanced, while six declined and two remained unchanged.

All sub-indices recorded gains except the trading sector, which fell by 31 points. Among the gainers, the life insurance sub-index rose by 136.04 points, manufacturing and processing by 137.81 points, and hotels and tourism by 116.62 points.

A total of 61,329 transactions were recorded during the day, generating a turnover of Rs6.23 billion.

Shares of Salapa Development Bank gained 9.99 percent, Panchakanya Mai Hydropower rose by 9.89 percent, and Reliance Spinning Mills increased by 9.82 percent. Meanwhile, Shubham Power Limited declined by 2.53 percent.

In terms of turnover, Ankhu Khola Hydropower recorded transactions worth Rs346.5 million, followed by Ridi Power Company at Rs277.4 million, SY Panel Nepal at Rs246.7 million, and Manjushree Finance at Rs226 million.