Large-cap gains drive market rebound after two-day decline

Despite ongoing selling pressure and subdued investor confidence, stocks rebounded from a two-day losing streak, primarily driven by gains in large-cap sectors such as banking, pharmaceuticals, and cement.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange's (DSE) key index, DSEX, rose by 12 points to close at 5,694, while the blue-chip index DS30 gained 8 points to close at 2,076 on Wednesday (18 September), though 57% stocks dropped on the day.

Besides, the port city bourse Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended in the green terrain, while its all-share price index CASPI gained 40 points to reach 16,117, and the general index CSCX ended 25 points higher at 9,714.

According to the daily market review by EBL Securities, Islami Bank played a pivotal role in driving the index upward, contributing approximately 8 points to the overall rise at the DSE. This was followed by significant contributions from Beacon Pharma, Olympic Industries, BRAC Bank, and Kohinoor Chemical.

EBL Securities said in its daily market commentary, the capital bourse of the country logged marginal recovery as bargain hunters chose to take positions in particular trendy scrips, although overall market sentiment remains subdued as cautious investors are still watchful of the market's momentum amid forthcoming corporate declarations. 

The core index remained afloat in green territory, withstanding the mild volatility throughout the session as buyers were slightly on the dominant side as they sought quick-gain opportunities in selective scrips, it noted. 

However, most investors preferred to remain watchful and stay on the sidelines due to concerns regarding the market outlook, EBL Securities further said.

Meanwhile, trading activities remained sluggish as market turnover further decreased by 13% to Tk553 crore as against Tk634 crore in the previous session. 

According to the EBL Securities report, on the sectoral front, bank issues exerted the highest turnover with contributing 18.6% to the DSE turnover, followed by pharma and food sectors. 

Jute, paper and bank stocks exhibited the most positive returns on the Dhaka bourse, while engineering, general insurance and travel exerted the most corrections.

Sonali Aansh Industries led the top turnover chart yesterday with a turnover of Tk25.36 crore, accounting for 4.6% of total turnover, followed by BRAC Bank with Tk22.35 crore, and Linde Bangladesh with Tk17.92 crore.

In the gainer's list, Beacon Pharma topped with a 9.97% increase to Tk138.9 per share, followed by Sonali Aansh, which rose 8.73% to Tk324.8, and Sonali Paper, up 8.27% to Tk185.7.

On the losing side, Premier Leasing topped the losers' list, dropping by 9.52% to Tk3.8 per share. Global Heavy Chemical declined 5.64% to Tk30.1, and Beach Hatchery fell by 5.63% to Tk87.1.