Securities board publishes draft rules to allow same-day share trading, comments due Nov 20

Securities board publishes draft intraday trading rules and asks for comments by November 20

Nepal's share market may get same-day trading, though not yet. The Securities Board of Nepal made public a draft Intraday Securities Trading Regulation, 2083 on Thursday and asked for comments by Mangsir 4 (November 20), OnlineKhabar and Setopati reported. Intraday trading is not allowed now.

Under the draft, an investor could buy and sell the same listed security within one trading day. Only securities that meet board criteria such as liquidity, daily volume and free float would qualify, Bizshala said. A broker offering the service would need paid-up capital of at least Rs 200 million (Rs 20 crore) and net worth above that, Bizshala and Ratopati reported.

Positions must be closed the same day. If a client leaves one open, the broker's system closes it and the client takes the gain or loss, the reports say. Brokers would also test whether a client is suited to this trading. Ratopati says the test looks at whether the client can bear a loss of up to 20 percent.

The draft gives no start date and says rollout could come in phases. The board first set out the idea in a concept paper on September 24, which proposed buying first and selling later as the first step, ShareSansar reported.

Why it matters: The draft's own text was not read for this digest, so these provisions rest on the outlets. Setopati says the draft also allows selling first and buying back later the same day, which the September paper had put off. The reports do not say where comments should go. Setopati says the rules need the board's final version and government approval.

Non-life insurers collect Rs 15.55 billion in premium in three months, Bizshala reports

Non-life insurers collected Rs 15.55 billion in the three months to the end of Asoj, up 22.82 percent from Rs 12.66 billion a year earlier, Bizshala reported from Insurance Authority data.

Central bank tells development banks and finance companies to name a cyber scam contact officer, Clickmandu reports

Nepal Rastra Bank's Payment Systems Department told development banks, finance companies and payment firms to name a round-the-clock contact officer and send details immediately, Clickmandu reported. Commercial banks, e-Sewa and Khalti are excluded.

Gold jumps Rs 13,300 in a day to Rs 288,900 a tola

Gold rose Rs 13,300 on Thursday, from Rs 275,600 to Rs 288,900 a tola, at the price set by the gold and silver dealers' federation, OnlineKhabar and Kantipur reported. That is a rise of 4.8 percent.

Silver went up Rs 265 to Rs 3,920 a tola, or 7.25 percent. OnlineKhabar gives a rise in the international market as the reason, with no figure. Neither report calls the price a record.

NEPSE falls 12.95 points to 2,652.58 as turnover drops to Rs 4.72 billion

NEPSE closed at 2,652.58 on Thursday, down 12.95 points or 0.49 percent from 2,665.53, Merolagani reported. Turnover was Rs 4.72 billion, down from Rs 7.43 billion on Wednesday.

Microfinance was the only sub-index to rise, by 0.09 percent. Development banks fell 0.70 percent, hydropower 0.67 percent and commercial banks 0.57 percent. OnlineKhabar counted 56 companies up, 211 down and 12 unchanged. Neither report gives a reason for the fall.

Government spends Rs 400.19 billion in the first quarter, 18.84 percent of the budget, OnlineKhabar reports

The government spent Rs 400.19 billion in Saun, Bhadau and Asoj, the first three months of FY 2083/84, OnlineKhabar reported from Finance Ministry figures. That is 18.84 percent of the Rs 2,124.34 billion budget. A year earlier the same months came to Rs 364.59 billion, Kantipur reported then, so spending is up about 9.8 percent.

Recurrent spending took Rs 294.26 billion. Capital spending was Rs 29.74 billion, and financing Rs 76.19 billion. Foreign aid received came to Rs 42.32 billion, of which Rs 34.34 billion was loans. Public debt stood at Rs 3,009.11 billion at the end of the quarter, 45.59 percent of GDP, the report said.

Why it matters: The ministry's own table was not read, and the report rests on one outlet. It prints spending growth of 0.30 percent, which its own amounts do not support, so this digest uses Kantipur's year-earlier figure.

Ministers say drafts to amend 59 Acts are prepared and the finance minister gives a US$100 billion target

Drafts to amend 59 Acts have been prepared and sent to the Prime Minister's Office, from where they go to the ministries concerned and the Ministry of Law, Infrastructure Development Minister Sunil Lamsal said on Thursday, OnlineKhabar reported. He said the aim is a more investment-friendly climate.

Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle told a press conference that about 500 sections of those Acts are being prepared for change, Bizshala reported. He said the economy should reach US$100 billion in five to seven years, with income per person of US$3,000 to US$3,300. That is a target. No Cabinet decision or bill has been reported.

Why it matters: The Nepal Infrastructure Summit is set for Mangsir 23 and 24 (December 9 and 10) in Kathmandu, Bizshala reported. On October 3 Wagle gave the same US$100 billion goal over the coming decade, a longer horizon, The Kathmandu Post reported. The reports give no list of the Acts and no date for sending them to Parliament.

About 1,700 vehicles are held at Korala awaiting clearance, OnlineKhabar reports

About 1,700 vehicles were held on the Nepal side at Korala on Thursday awaiting inspection clearance, OnlineKhabar reported. Snow clearing there had run four days, the Lomanthang chair said, and police count 7,100 electric vehicles imported this fiscal year.

Banke's total paddy purchase quota is halved to 10,000 quintals, all medium grade, Kantipur reports

The state food company will buy 10,000 quintals of medium paddy in Banke and no coarse paddy, Kantipur reported. Last year's quota was 20,000 quintals, of which 15,000 was coarse. Traders pay Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 a quintal below support price.

Only one of seven hydropower projects awarded to Indian companies is under construction, Post reports

Seven hydropower projects totalling about 4,700 MW have been awarded to Indian companies, and only the 900 MW Arun-III is being built, The Kathmandu Post reported on Thursday. The Arun-IV memorandum has expired and an extension is being sought, with no project development agreement signed.

Arun-III was originally due in mid-April 2025; its latest deadline is mid-March 2028, the Post said. Its generation works are 77.5 percent complete and transmission 60 percent. The developer has applied to the Investment Board for 18 more months, Kantipur reported. Neither report says the request was granted.

Why it matters: Nepal and India agreed in January 2024 on exports of 10,000 MW over 10 years, the Post said. The 4,700 MW total is the Post's own, and it prints two capacities for Arun-IV and for Lower Arun.