Stocks keep bleeding for two days
Stocks continued to decline for the second consecutive session today as concerned investors sold off their holdings to protect their funds amid fears of economic uncertainty caused by the ongoing unrest.
The benchmark index DSEX of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) plunged 53 points to close at 5,330 – its lowest in a month.
In the last two consecutive sessions, the DSEX lost 83 points, while the market capitalization dropped by Tk5,000 crore, settling at Tk6.52 lakh crore.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also closed in the red, with its key index CASPI falling 113 points to end at 15,273, and the general index CSCX dropping 67 points to finish at 9,201.
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Market insiders noted that the ongoing losing streak did not worsen further due to the securities regulator's floor restriction, which prevents any stock from falling more than 3% in a single day.
The EBL Securities said in its daily market review the benchmark index of the Dhaka bourse extended its losing streak as risk-averse investors continued their sell dominance to protect their funds from the ailing market, being apprehensive of the prevailing unrest that raised concerns regarding the market's outlook.
The market stayed on a red trajectory for most of today's session as sellers remained predominant across the trading floor since investors are wary of the market momentum due to the prevalent downbeat vibe, it added.
Due to the internet blackout and ongoing curfew, the trading schedule was adjusted to 11am to 2pm last week, instead of the usual 10am to 2:30pm.
However, the trading hours were reset to 10am to 2pm for three days until Tuesday, following government instructions.
Meanwhile, the blue-chip index DS30 of the DSE dropped 18 points to close at 1,902, while the Shariah index DSES ended 11 points lower, closing at 1,166.
During the session, of the stocks traded, 27 advanced, 332 declined, and 33 remained unchanged. The turnover fell by 8% to Tk450 crore at the DSE compared to the previous session.
The pharmaceutical sector dominated the turnover chart, accounting for 21.5% of the total turnover, followed by the banking sector with 15.4% and the food sector with 13.3% at the DSE.
Agni Systems was the top-traded stock, with a turnover of Tk27.55 crore, followed by Orion Infusion at Tk15.63 crore, NRB Bank at Tk13.94 crore, and Square Pharma at Tk13.34 crore.
All sectors experienced poor returns, with IT stocks seeing the most significant price depreciation at 2.8%. Paper stocks lost 2.4%, and services dropped 2.4% as well.
Newly listed Techno Drugs led the gainers' table with a share price surge of 9.89%, followed by Libra Infusion with a 4.50% increase, United Finance with a 4.38% rise, Rupali Life Insurance with a 3.55% gain, and Gemini Sea Food with a 2.42% gain.
Energypac Power Generation performed the worst on the day, with its share price dropping 3%, followed by Phoenix Insurance, HR Textile, Rangpur Foundry, and Janata Insurance.
