Stocks down at opening with low turnover

Stocks opened lower on Thursday with low participation of investors as investors were mostly cautious of the market’s trend due to uncertainties over the ongoing economic and political tensions.

The record non-performing loans in the banking sector coupled with downgraded sovereign ratings of the country on Moody’s scale hit investors sentiment, market operators said.

The news of huge negative equity reaching over Tk 97 billion in the capital market further triggered the prevailing investor pessimism.

Following the previous day’s flat note, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 13 points or 0.24 per cent to 5,232 at 11:00 am, when the report was filed.

The DS30 index, a group of 30 prominent companies, lost 6 points to 1,929 while the DSES index, which represents Shariah-based companies, shed 3 points to 1,159.

Turnover, another important indicator of the market, remained low and amounted to Tk 937 million till then.

Of the issues traded till then, 128 advanced, 160 declined, and 82 issues remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.

Beximco Pharma was the most traded stock with shares worth Tk 56 million changing hands.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) saw a downward trend till then with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI)—losing 10 points to stand at 14,662 while the Selective Categories Index – CSCX fell 7 points to reach 8,928.

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