Stocks continue to slip as sale pressure mounts

The capital bourse – Dhaka Stock Exchange – failed to recover from its recent downbeat trend in the new week also as sale pressure continued to mount amid investors’ jitter about a potential market gain.

The late-hour sale pressure eroded the early-hour gains since investors perceived that as an opportunity to offload their holdings in the face of unclear market momentum.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the premier bourse, inched down 0.5 points to settle at 6,218 against 6,219 in the previous trading session.

Among other indices, the DS30, the blue-chip index, added 0.04 points or 0.001 per cent to close at 2,221, while the DSES, the Shariah-based index, lost 0.63 points or 0.04 per cent to 1,359.

Meanwhile, the market participation continued to decrease, with the DSE turnover declined to a 50-day low to Tk 257 crore yesterday.

Besides, yesterday’s turnover was 21.1 per cent lower than the tally of Tk 326 crore in the previous session.

The market started on a positive note despite some volatility as investors anticipated a favorable outcome from the regulator’s meeting with IOSCO considering the current market scenario, said EBL Securities, a stockbroker, in its daily market review.

The morning optimism, however, failed to sustain as cautious investors preferred to partially liquidate their positions and remain on the sidelines amid shaky confidence across the trading floor, it added.

The pharma sector topped the turnover chart with a contribution of 18.6 per cent to the total turnover of the DSE, followed by the IT (11.3 per cent) and food (10.8 per cent)

Most of the sectors displayed mixed returns in the capital bourse.