DSEX drops for the second day in a row
Dhaka stocks extended their downward trend for the second consecutive session today as investors continued to sell off shares, driven by concerns over economic challenges, political uncertainty, and declining capital market transactions.
On the day, the DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), dropped 8 points to close at 5,185. The DSE Shariah Index edged down 1 point to 1,166, while the DS30 index fell by 11 points to 1,911.
Turnover at the DSE decreased by 16.24%, coming down to Tk397 crore from Tk474 crore. Among the 395 stocks traded, 148 gained, 175 declined, and 72 remained unchanged.
The indices opened on a positive note and maintained an upward trend for a brief period. However, after the first hour, the market faltered, and the prevailing selling pressure led to losses by the close of trading.
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Key stocks contributing to the decline included Grameenphone, Kohinoor Chemicals Company, Robi Axiata, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, Islami Bank Bangladesh, Marico Bangladesh, Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, Bangladesh Submarine Cables, BRAC Bank, and British American Tobacco Bangladesh Company Limited.
Despite the overall downturn, a few stocks emerged as top gainers, including Monno Fabrics, Emerald Oil Industries, Deshbandhu Polymer, Dragon Sweater and Spinning, Dominage Steel Building Systems, HR Textile, SAIF Powertec, and Fu-Wang Ceramic Industries.
EBL Securities, in its daily market commentary, said the country's capital bourse started the week on a gloomy note amid lower market participation as cautious investors shy away from taking positions in equities, considering the market's waning momentum.
Investors were active on both sides of the trading fence, causing the core index to follow a topsy-turvy movement, while sellers ended up in the dominant position due to their cautious selling approach pervading the volatile market.
However, some recent beaten-down issues dominated the turnover board as opportunistic investors sought quick gain opportunities following the significant corrections, according to the commentary.
On the sectoral front, banks led turnover with 13.5%, followed by general insurance at 13.2% and pharmaceuticals at 12.4%.
Most sectors, however, posted negative returns, with jute seeing the sharpest decline of 10.2%, followed by paper at 2.8% and life insurance at 2.4%.
Only a few sectors, such as financial institutions (1.6%), services (1.0%), and food (0.4%), managed to record modest gains.
Meanwhile, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended in the red. The CSCX index fell by 71.6 points, and the CASPI index dropped by 125.9 points.
