TEHRAN -Tehran’s stock market opened the first trading day of the week with strong demand, with the benchmark index gaining more than 95,000 points by mid-session as retail trading value surpassed 27 trillion tomans.
 The Tehran Stock Exchange’s main index rose by more than 95,000 points on Saturday to 6.599 million, bringing it within striking distance of the 6.6 million level.
The equal-weighted index also advanced by around 23,000 points to 1.821 million.
The simultaneous rise in both indices suggests that buying demand was not limited to a handful of large, index-heavy companies, with smaller and medium-sized stocks also registering gains.
Trading activity was also robust. By the time of the report, 634,126 transactions had been recorded, while the value of retail trades exceeded 27 trillion tomans.
Sustained high trading value is considered an important indicator of the strength of an upward market trend, as price gains unsupported by liquidity and broader investor participation tend to be less durable.
Fars National Copper Industries Co. (FMLI), Isfahan Oil Refining Co. (SHPNA), Bank Pasargad (VPASAR), Taban, TAPIco, Bandar Abbas Oil Refining Co. (SHBANDAR) and Bank Mellat (VBMELLAT) were among the major stocks influencing the benchmark index.
The faster rise in the main index compared with the equal-weighted index indicates that large-cap companies continued to play an outsized role in the market’s advance.
Still, the significant gain in the equal-weighted index compared with some recent sessions was viewed as a positive sign, suggesting that demand was spreading more broadly across the market.
Overall, Saturday’s mid-session trading presented a positive picture, with the benchmark approaching 6.6 million, the equal-weighted index posting a sizeable gain and retail trading value exceeding 27 trillion tomans.
If demand remains at current levels through the close, the market will have started the week on a strong footing, although the sustainability of the rally will depend on continued liquidity inflows and demand across both large and smaller stocks.