Dhaka stocks finished on the up on Wednesday after four sessions in the red but the turnover continued to decline despite some state-owned entities’ efforts to boost the market.
The benchmark general index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX, gained 0.77 per cent, or 29.21 points, to close at 3,821.56 points.DS30, the blue-chip index of the DSE, closed at 1,384.22 points, gaining 0.84 per cent, or 11.60 points.
The DSEX and DS30 had lost 162.13 points and 69.06 points respectively in the last four trading sessions.
The turnover of the bourse declined to Tk 225.84 crore from the previous session’s Tk 265.12 crore.
Of the 280 shares and mutual funds traded on the day, 193 advanced, 61 declined and 26 remained unchanged.
The market started the day negatively as investors continued to sell-off shares fearing further decline, but the market started to gain when some state-owned entities became active on the trading floor, said market operators.
The declining turnover shows that the participation of retail investors in the market is very low, they added.
Political uncertainty over the next polls-time government made the investors panicky, which has been reflected in the recent market trend as the DSE had been losing points for the last two weeks, said the operators.
They said it was not the real picture of the market and Wednesday’s upbeat vibe might not continue on Thursday, the last trading session before the Eid-ul-Azha vacation, unless investors’ participation increases.
‘The DSEX closed above psychological level of 3,800 points after touching four & half months’ lowest point, yesterday [Tuesday]. Continuous price decline in last few sessions lured some of the witty participants for positioning in fundamentally strong scrips,’ IDLC Investments said in its daily market commentary.
‘However, most of the general investors were observing market sentiment rather than active trade, which kept participation lethargic. Meticulousness in trading prevailed as market showed mixed trend of profit taking and re-positioning throughout the session,’ it also said.
Argon Denims led the turnover chart on the Wednesday as its shares worth Tk 11.05 crore changed hands.
Square Pharmaceuticals, Envoy Textile Mills, Delta Life Insurance, Bangladesh Building Systems, JMI Syringes and Medical Devices, Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company, Meghna Cement, CMC Kamal and Grameenphone were the day’s other turnover leaders.
Meghna Cement gained the most as the price of its shares increased by 9.87 per cent, while NCCBL Mutual Fund-1 lost the most, 9.78 per cent.
The trading of the DSE will remain closed from October 11 to October 19, including weekly holidays and Eid-ul-Azha vacation. The regular trading of the bourse will resume on October 20.
-With New Age input
