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Stocks closed lower on Tuesday as investors continued to secure quick profits.
The easing of adversities on the macroeconomic front, along with the central bank’s decision to keep policy rates unchanged at 10 per cent for the second half of the current fiscal year, boosted investor confidence to some extent.
Besides, declining Treasury yields and bank interest rates spurred bargain hunters to take positions in lucrative shares amid expectations for a reversal from the market’s prolonged bearish sentiment.
Analysts believe the Bangladesh Bank’s (BB) decision to keep its policy rate unchanged amid falling inflation and treasury yields is a positive signal for the equity market outlook.
The prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) decreased 8.33 points to settle at 5,203.20.
The blue-chip index DS30, comprising 30 leading companies, decreased by 5.90 points to 1,922.64, while the DSES Index, representing Shariah-compliant companies, decreased by 0.41 points to 1,160.23 by the close.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, stood at Tk 5.99 billion, up 35 per cent from the previous trading day.
This is the highest turnover within the last 3 and a half months; before this, the highest turnover was 6.51 billion on the sixth of November the previous year.
The majority of the stocks saw a price decrease, as out of the 398 issues traded, 136 closed higher, 203 ended lower, and 64 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Robi Axiata was the most-traded stock with shares worth Tk 324.32 million changing hands, followed by Orion Infusion, Sunlife Insurance, Paper Processing & Packaging, and Grameenphone.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) ended down with its All Share Price Index (CASPI) decreasing 32.44 points to settle at 14544 and the Selective Categories Index (CSCX) decreasing 18.82 points to settle at 8817.
The port city bourse traded 2.49 million shares and mutual fund units with a turnover volume of Tk 59.94 million.
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