Stocks manage to stay afloat amid choppy trading

The capital bourse – Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) – edged up Tuesday although a trading volatility prevailed throughout the session due to investors’ appetite for buying sector-specific securities alongside their selloffs.

Many investors were pouring fresh funds into selective stocks in anticipation of quick gains amid the ongoing corporate earnings disclosures.

On the other hand, cautious investors continued offloading their holdings because majority of listed companies displayed shaky performance in the October-December quarter.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the premier bourse, inched up 4.7 points to settle at 6,285 against 6,281 in the previous trading session.

Among other indices, the DS30, the blue-chip index, added 5.88 points or 0.26 per cent to 2,234, and the DSES, the Shariah-based index, edged up 0.84 points or 0.06 per cent to 1,369.

Meanwhile, the prime bourse witnessed a slight decrease in participation, with the DSE turnover going down by 4.8 per cent to Tk 553 crore against the tally of Tk 580 crore in the previous session.

Investors remained active on both sides of the trading fence, with buyers reigning the trading floor as opportunist investors continued reshuffling their portfolio to take positions in quick rallies in selective issues, said EBL Securities, a stockbroker, in its daily
market review.

Cautious investors, however, continued to offload their holdings following dismal financial results of listed firms, it added.

Moreover, concerns regarding the probable economic hit back of implementing economic reforms on availing of the IMF’s $4.7 billion loan also battered investor confidence, EBL Securities stated.

The IT sector topped the turnover chart, with a contribution of 15.9 per cent to the total turnover of the DSE, followed by the pharma (14.0 per cent), and the miscellaneous (10.4 per cent).

Most sectors displayed mixed returns, with the travel posting the highest gain of 2.8 per cent, services (2.4 per cent) and jute (1.4 per cent).

On the other hand, the life insurance sector faced the highest correction of 0.9 per cent, followed by general insurance (0.6 per cent) and cement (0.1 per cent).

Olympic Industries Ltd topped the gainers’ list with a return of 5.4 per cent, while Pragati Life Insurance Ltd suffered the most with a loss of 9.9 per cent yesterday.

Out of the 391 securities traded, 29 stocks surged, 141 issues fell, and 221 scrips did not see any trading movement on the DSE trading floor.

The port city bourse, CSE, also settled higher yesterday with its two major indices – the selected indices (CSCX) and the all-share price index (CASPI) – inching up by 3.6 points and 5.9 points respectively.