Stocks close slightly higher, turnover drops

Dhaka stocks managed to end the week staying afloat in green territory, riding on investors’ buying binge on selective sector-specific issues.

But the majority of scrips extended their corrections owing to investors’ lack of confidence following a staggering hike in fuel and energy prices for industries and commercial sector.

The government on Wednesday hiked gas prices by a staggering 179 per cent, with an eye on eliminating subsidies and cutting the fiscal deficit which battered stock investors optimism on a large scale.

The DSEX, the broad index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), the premier bourse, rose 7.3 points to settle at 6,265 against 6,258 in the previous trading session.

Among other indices, the DS30, the blue-chip index, dropped 1.81 points or 0.08 per cent to 2,208, while the DSES, the Shariah-based index, added 0.35 points or 0.02 per cent to close at 1,367.

Meanwhile, the Dhaka bourse witnessed a massive fall in participation, with the DSE turnover declining by 36.8 per cent to Tk 590 crore against Tk 934 crore in the previous session.

The market witnessed volatility throughout the session as investors remained active on both sides of the trading fence, said EBL Securities, a stockbroker, in its daily market review. Investors’ participation remained concentrated on particular sectors and selective scrips which were expected to be somewhat immune to earnings volatility caused by recent macroeconomic adversities, it added.

The IT sector topped the turnover chart with a contribution of 23.0 per cent to the total turnover of the prime bourse, followed by the pharma (11.9 per cent) and the general insurance (10.5 per cent).

Most of the sectors displayed mixed returns on the DSE trading floor, with the IT posting the highest gain of 3.2 per cent, followed by general insurance (2.7 per cent) and travel (1.5 per cent).

On the other hand, the cement sector faced the highest correction of 1.1 per cent, followed by jute (0.9 per cent) and tannery (0.4 per cent).

IT Consultants Limited topped the prime bourse’s gainers list yesterday with a return of 10 per cent, while Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited suffered the most with a loss of 3.2 per cent. Out of the 391 issues traded, 76 securities advanced, 100 stocks declined, and 215 scrips did not see any trading movement on the DSE trading floor.