TEHRAN- TEDPIX, the main index of Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE), dropped 37 points on Saturday (the first day of Iranian calendar week).

The index closed at 1.284 million points as over 6.579 billion securities worth 41.498 trillion rials (about $159.6 million) were traded at the TSE.

The first market’s index dropped 1,315 points, and the second market’s index rose 3,901 points.

TEDPIX lost 17,000 points (1.3 percent) to 1.284 million in the past Iranian calendar week (ended on Friday).

During the past week, the indices of Mobarakeh Steel Company, Bandar Abbas Oil Refining Company, Isfahan Oil Refinery, Iran Khodro Company, Tejarat Bank, and National Iranian Copper Company were the most widely followed ones.

On January 22, Head of Iran’s Capital Market Development and Stabilization Fund Amir-Mahdi Sabaei said that part of the allocations by the National Development Fund (NDF) has been deposited into the stabilization fund to support the stock market.

Sabaei had previously announced the allocation of 120 trillion rials (about $462 million) of NDF resources for the Capital Market Development and Stabilization Fund.

The official said the rest of the funding will also be paid based on a mutually agreed schedule, adding: "We hope that the rest of the deposits, like the deposits made yesterday, will be made regularly according to the agreed schedule."

Sabaei noted that in addition to the resources received from the NDF, the fund can also be financed through the money and capital markets.

The allocation of financial resources from NDF to the Capital Market Stabilization Fund is one of the measures that the government has been taking since the stock market started a downward trend.

MA/MA