KATHMANDU, Feb. 20 -- After a brief rise early in the morning, the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) index pulled back sharply and shed more than 10 points within the first hour of Wednesday's trading session. Nonetheless, the index recouped all of its losses to close the day with a moderate gain. At the close, Nepse settled at 1,405.25 points - up 5.24 points against the session earlier.

Stretching its gaining streak to four days, the index has held ground above 1,400 points mark suggesting a sharp correction unlikely in the coming session. The recent rally has also been backed by massive a turnover which suggests investors taking long positions heavily. In the day, microfinance stocks led the charge, while banking, insurance and other stock...