Stocks scale up for 2nd day

Dhaka stocks scaled up for the second straight day on Wednesday as investors were putting fresh funds into some sector-specific issues which were being traded at a lucrative price level amidst the ongoing earnings declarations.

The DSEX, the broad index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), added 16.15 points or 0.25 per cent to settle at 6,344 versus 6,328 points in the previous trading session.

Among other indices, the DSES, the Shariah-based index, edged up 2.64 points or 0.19 per cent to 1,393, and the DS30, the blue-chip index, rose 5.43 points or 0.24 per cent to close at 2,249.

Turnover, another crucial market indicator, surged by 19 per cent to Tk 741.8 crore against Tk 623 crore in the previous trading session.

Investors became optimistic centering on a quick resolution of the issue of cheque encashment before share purchase. Some investors, however, remained watchful, fueled by the bleak forecasts about the upcoming corporate declarations amidst the current macroeconomic concerns, said EBL Securities, a stockbroker, in its daily market review.

On the sectoral front, the miscellaneous topped the turnover chart with a contribution of 18.1 per cent to the total turnover, followed by the pharma and chemicals (15.7 per cent) and engineering (12.7 per cent) sectors.

Almost all the sectors displayed mixed returns, out of which the travel sector posted the highest gain of 4.3 per cent, followed by IT (2.2 per cent), and services (2.2 per cent).