Dhaka bourse records lowest turnover in five months

Infographic: TBS

Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) saw its lowest turnover in five months today, as investor participation dwindled significantly.

EBL Securities, in its daily market review, said trading activities remained stagnant with market turnover in DSE falling below the Tk300 crore mark for the first time in two weeks.

The day's daily turnover stood at Tk275 crore. The last time turnover fell lower than this was on 4 August, when it hit Tk207 crore.

Meanwhile, market sentiment remained subdued, with the benchmark index, DSEX, shedding 1.47 points to close at 5,169.

This marked the third consecutive day of decline, reflecting continued investor caution.

Of the traded securities, 150 advanced, 159 declined, and 86 remained unchanged, signalling a mixed performance across the market.

Ashequr Rahman, managing director of Midway Securities, told The Business Standard that the secondary market remained sluggish due to subdued investor confidence.

He explained that investors typically refrained from entering the market unless specific events motivated them to participate.

"For instance, a week ago, investor activity surged following the announcement that the state-run Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) secured a Tk3,000 crore loan to support the capital market.

However, in the absence of similar market-moving events, most investors have adopted a wait-and-see approach. Despite holding funds, they are hesitant to actively participate in the market," he added.

EBL Securities said the premier bourse of the country observed another lackluster session with the benchmark index failing to stay afloat in green territory, extending the market's waning momentum as cautious investors shy away from taking positions in equities amid uncertainties over the market outlook.

Despite the indices being somewhat upbeat at the opening thirty minutes of the session, the market succumbed to its prevailing downtrend that pushed the majority of scrips sliding into red territory for consecutive sessions, it added.

Rahmat Pasha, chief executive officer of UCB Stock Brokerage, stated that the market has been sluggish during the year-end period, as most institutional investors slow down to finalise their annual portfolios.

He added that market intermediaries are currently focused on managing margin loan accounts, which has led them to hold back on making additional investments.

Concerns raised over inspection decision

A managing director of a brokerage firm disclosed that the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) recently sent letters to several top brokerage houses to investigate their activities. This move has unsettled investors, further dampening market activity.

He said, "The DSE has long been empowered to investigate brokerage firms and has consistently done so. Why is the securities commission stepping in? Such actions only serve to unnecessarily alarm investors."

He also pointed out that the commission's letters did not contain any specific allegations to justify the regulatory inspections, raising questions about the purpose of these investigations.

Another managing director suggested that the BSEC's investigations seemed to target brokerage houses whose top officials have been critical of the regulator's actions from time to time.

According to a BSEC source, the commission has sent letters to several brokerage firms, including BRAC EPL Stock Broker, LankaBangla Securities, and UCB Stock Brokerage, as part of its inspection process.

The BSEC clarified that the investigations are part of its routine oversight efforts aimed at ensuring transparency and accountability in the activities of brokerage firms.

Investors stage human chain, protest

General investors staged a human chain protest today, demanding the resignation of Khondoker Rashed Maqsood, chairman of the BSEC.

The protest took place around 12 noon in front of the BSEC headquarters in Agargaon, Dhaka.

Participants expressed frustration over the continuous decline in stock market prices, which they claim has left them in a dire financial situation. 

"Investors are cornered with no relief in sight. Their sole demand now is the resignation of the BSEC chairman," said one of the protesters.

Market performance

Most of the sectors displayed mixed returns, out of which jute, life insurance and non-bank financial institutions exerted the most corrections on the bourse, while tannery, IT and bank exhibited marginal gains.

Khulna Printing and Packaging led the gainers' list, with its share price surging 9.72%, followed by SK Trims, Fortune Shoe and Bay Leasing, according to the EBL Securities.

HR Textile was the top loser, with its share price dropping 5.96% following the no dividend declaration in the last fiscal year. The other top losers are Fareast Finance, Simtex Industries and Peoples Leasing.

Investors showed the highest activity in the pharmaceutical sector, which accounted for 17.3% of the DSE's total turnover, followed by the banking sector at 15.7% and the engineering sector at 11.5%.

Orion Infusion was the top-traded stock in terms of value. Its shares worth Tk18.67 crore were traded, followed by Robi at Tk8.83 crore and Oimex Electrode at Tk8.66 crore.