Dhaka bourse dips 41 points amid lack of catalysts

The Dhaka bourse closed Monday's session with a moderate loss of 41 points, as many investors opted for sell-offs while others remained on the sidelines in the absence of any visible market direction.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) opened the session on a positive note, but after half an hour the broad index, DSEX, began to decline and continued falling until mid-session amid investors' selling pressure.

Later, a timid recovery was observed for a while, but it also fizzled out. Finally, the DSEX settled at 5,230 points, posting a loss of 0.77 per cent.

Of the 390 issues traded, 123 advanced, 213 declined and 54 remained unchanged. The prime bourse posted a turnover of Tk 7.93 billion, 5.22 per cent lower than the previous session.

Although market indices opened on a positive note, the momentum swiftly lost traction as jittery investor sentiment triggered broad-based sell-offs, reflecting a lack of confidence across the trading floor, said EBL Securities in a market review.

The price correction experienced by the majority of blue-chip stocks on Monday played a major role in dragging down the broad index due to their significant market capitalisation.

Of the 30 blue-chip companies, 22 declined. They include British American Tobacco Bangladesh Company (BATBC), BRAC Bank, City Bank, and Walton Hi-Tech Industries.

As a result, the DS30 index, comprising blue-chip stocks, also experienced a moderate loss of 1.06 per cent, or 21.30 points.

The list of the day's gainers includes Al-Arafa Islami Bank, Mir Akhter Hossain, Beacon Pharma, Far Chemical Industries and Pioneer Insurance.

On the other hand, BRAC Bank was the top dragger, as it alone wiped out 10 points from the broad index.

Other index draggers include Pubali Bank, City Bank, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, Eastern Bank and Square Pharmaceuticals.

Investors' participation was mainly concentrated in the engineering sector, which posted a turnover of Tk 1.32 billion and accounted for 16.6 per cent of total market turnover.

Mir Akhter Hossain recorded the highest gain on Monday, rising 9.82 per cent to close at Tk 31.3 each.

On the other hand, Meghna Condensed Milk Industries was the day's worst loser, declining 4.68 per cent to close at Tk 36.70 each.

CASPI, the broad index of the Chittagong Stock Exchange, lost 41 points on Monday as the majority of listed securities declined.

Of the 192 issues traded, 84 advanced, 90 declined and 18 remained unchanged, while the port city bourse posted a turnover of Tk 403.32 million.

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