Stocks down at opening with thin participation

Stocks opened lower in early trading on Thursday, with participation of investors remaining low, as investors were mostly reluctant to invest in shares to avoid further capital erosion.

Following the major setback in the previous day, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 26 points or 0.47 per cent to 5,428 within the first hour of trading at 11:00am.

Unrest in the middle-east and the imposition of record Tk 4.28 billion fines to nine investors for manipulating the share price of Beximco, prompted cautious investors to go ‘wait-and-see’ approach, said a stockbroker.

The blue-chip DS30 index, a group of 30 prominent companies, also fell 13 points to 1,974 and the DSES index, which represents Shariah-based companies, dropped 4 points to 1,215 till then.

Turnover, another important indicator of the market, stood at only Tk 890 million till then.

Of the issues traded till then, 221 advanced, 193 declined, and 55 issues remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor till then.

IBN Sina Pharma was the most traded stock till then, with shares worth Tk 75 million changing hands, following its corporate declaration.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange also saw a negative trend till then with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI)—losing 33 points to stand at 15,257 while the Selective Categories Index – CSCX shed 17 points to reach 9,267 till then.

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