DSEX, the key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), closed the week in the red as investors opted to realise their recent gains amid uncertainty regarding the sustainability of the market’s upbeat momentum.
Market insiders said that DSEX closed with a bearish nod this week, followed by price erosion in the majority of sectors. The market experienced volatility throughout the week, with investors initially driving indices upward by focusing on fundamentally strong stocks that had become cheap.
Despite expectations of a rebound, the market failed to sustain its upward trend and ultimately declined as sellers took the lead, driven by short-term profit bookings, they said.
DSEX lost 20.98 points, or 0.35 per cent, and closed the week at 5,903.84 points. The blue-chip index, DS30, gained 46.61 points and stood at 2,179.35 points, while the Shariah-based index, DSES, lost 10.19 points and stood at 1,264.72 points.
However, investor participation continued to surge to touch the level of two years, increasing the average market turnover by 64.7 per cent to Tk 1,282 crore from Tk 778 crore in the previous week.
The market, which performed five sessions this week, started on a positive note on Sunday by increasing 1.54 per cent. However, it turned negative on Monday by 1.39 per cent and continued the trend till Tuesday by 1.08 per cent. The market turned positive again on Wednesday by 1.45 per cent but ended on a negative note on Thursday by 0.82 per cent.
The market witnessed a tussle between bulls and bears that competed to grab the rein of the momentum.
Despite beginning the week on a positive note, driven by euphoria following the recent major political shift, the market appeared to cool down as investors eventually preferred profit-taking, which compelled the benchmark index to settle in negative territory by the end of the week, according to the weekly market review of EBL Securities.
Investors were mostly active in the banking sector (24.4 per cent), followed by the pharmaceutical sector (14.4 per cent) and the telecommunications sector (11.0 per cent). Sectors ended mixed, with the telecommunications sector (20.2 per cent) being the highest gainer and the paper sector (- 9.0 per cent) being the biggest loser.
Over the week, the price of 87 issues advanced and 287 issues declined. Five sectors were bullish last week, in which Telecom, Cement and Financial Ins were the top gainers, while Paper, Tannery and Service were the top losers.
This week, the most popular scrip was GP based on price and turnover growth, while the top price gainer was ISLAMICFIN and the top loser was ORIONINFU.
As the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission is working relentlessly to support the liquidity of the market, the investors who are in wait-and-see mode should engage themselves more by participating continuously in the market to take it to a new level. All considered the market may go bullish with moderate trading activities for the upcoming week, noted Royal Capital in its weekly market review.
Thursday’s market scenario
On Thursday, DSEX lost 48.94 points and closed at 5,903.84. DS30 and DSES closed at 2,179.35 and 1,264.72 points, respectively.
Most of the large-cap sectors posted negative performance on the day. Grameenphone was the most traded share, with a turnover of Tk 85 crore.
Market turnover fell by 19.7 per cent to Tk 999 crore from the previous session’s Tk 1,243 crore.
The premier bourse of the country held onto its downbeat vibe following a single-day break as risk-averse investors continued their cautious selling approach since the recently heightened optimism gradually cooled down due to the weakening strength of the market’s momentum.
The market remained sell-dominant throughout the session as the investment appetite of market participants has been somewhat weakened after the market heated up and registered substantial gains recently driven by investor euphoria following the changes in the country’s political environment.
Of the 398 scrips traded, 91 advanced, 275 declined and 32 remained unchanged at DSE.
Meanwhile, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also settled on red terrain on Thursday, with the selected indices, CSCX, and All Share Price Index, CASPI, losing 66.2 and 110.5 points, respectively.
