Stocks tumble as investors opt to liquidate holdings

Dhaka stocks tumbled as cautious investors continued partially liquidating their holdings amidst the prevailing volatility in the market.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), declined 12.5 points to settle at 6,202 against 6,214 in the previous trading session.

Among other indices, the DS30, the blue-chip index, lost 3.07 points or 0.13 per cent to close at 2,197, and the DSES, the Shariah-based index, fell 3.53 points or 0.26 per cent to 1,344.

Turnover, another crucial market indicator, dropped by 5.9 per cent to Tk 469 crore against Tk 498 crore in the previous session.

The market continued a downbeat vibe throughout the session as sellers dominated the trading floor, since investors preferred to remain watchful ahead of the upcoming corporate earnings announcements, said EBL Securities, a stockbroker, in its daily market review.

The prolonged volatile sentiment in the market induced investors to prefer short-term profit booking instead of taking long-term positions in equities, it added.

The food sector topped the turnover chart with a contribution of 15.9 per cent of the total DSE turnover, followed by IT (14.4 per cent), and pharma (10.6 per cent).

Meanwhile, Apex Footwear Limited was the day’s most traded stock with Tk 29.9 crore worth of shares changing hands, followed by aamra networks limited, and Gemini Sea Food Ltd.

Most sectors displayed dismal returns at the premier bourse, with the IT facing the highest correction of 2.3 per cent, followed by paper (1.9 per cent), and travel (1.2 per cent).

On the other hand, the tannery posted the highest gain of 0.4 per cent, followed by jute (0.3 per cent) and food (0.1 per cent).

Beach Hatchery Ltd topped the gainer list with a return of 9.9 per cent, while Al-Haj Textile Mills Limited was the day’s worst sufferer with a loss of 6.2 per cent.

Out of the issues traded, 36 advanced, 88 declined and 268 remained unchanged.

The port city bourse, CSE, also settled on red terrain, with its two major indices – the selected indices (CSCX), and the all-share price index (CASPI) – declined by 7.0 points and 11.2 points respectively.