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Stocks tumbled on Monday with the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) dipped below the 6,000-mark after three days as risk-averse investors went on a selling binge on major sector issues.
The market opened marginally higher and went through positive for three hours of trading, but the last hour fell sharply lower as cautious investors booked quick-profit on major sector stocks.
DSEX, the key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 62.40 points or 1.03 per cent to settle at 5,975.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal placed a record Tk 6.03 trillion national budget for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021-2022 before parliament on Thursday.
The budget proposed to cut the corporate tax rate for the listed firms by 2.5 percentage points to 22.5 per cent for the upcoming fiscal year while the ongoing facilities to invest undisclosed money in the capital market is not extended.
Two other indices also ended lower with the DSE 30 Index, comprising blue chips, fell 27.42 points to finish at 2,195 and the DSE Shariah Index (DSES) lost 9.88 points to close at 1,289.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, also fell to Tk 20.83 billion on the country’s premier bourse, which was 22 per cent lower than the previous day’s 10.5 years highest turnover of Tk 26.69 billion.
Market operators said late hours profit booking sell-offs in major sector stocks pulled the stocks down while many investors followed a cautious stance to observe the budgetary impact on the market.
Losers took a strong lead over the gainers, as out of 367 issues traded, 242 declined, 98 advanced and 27 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Beximco - the flagship company of Beximco Group- continued to dominate the turnover chart with shares worth Tk 2.47 billion changing hands, followed by LankaBangla Finance (Tk 820 million), Fortune Shoes (Tk 598 million), Pioneer Insurance (Tk 546 million) and Saif Powertec (Tk 455 million).
National Housing Finance was the day’s top gainer, posting 10 per cent gain while First Security Islami Bank was the worst loser, losing 12.50 per cent following its price adjustment after the record date.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended sharply lower with the CSE All Share Price Index – CASPI –losing 189 points to settle at 17,317 and the Selective Categories Index – CSCX shedding 114 points to close at 10,436.
Of the issues traded, 191 declined, 86 advanced and 23 issues remained unchanged on the CSE.
The port city’s bourse traded 29.89 million shares and mutual fund units with a turnover value worth about Tk 907 million.