Stock slips after six-day rally

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) indices declined yesterday, ending a six-day winning streak, as investors booked profits and shifted focus to undervalued and more promising stocks.

After gaining 66 points over the six sessions, the DSEX index fell by 13 points to 5,166 on the day. The DSE Shariah Index (DSES) lost 4 points, closing at 1,144, while the DS30 index slipped 1 point to 1,912.

Trading activity also slowed, with turnover falling 12.9% to Tk374 crore, compared to Tk430 crore in the previous session. Among 395 stocks traded, 92 advanced, 240 declined, and 63 remained unchanged.

Market insiders pointed out that as institutional investors remain inactive, retail investors are following suit amid current challenges. 

According to them, high deposit rates, liquidity crunch, low institutional and foreign participation, and economic challenges worsened by political instability are some of the key barriers to market growth and these challenges are overshadowing market recovery efforts.

Today's trading session started with a positive trend for the first 15 minutes before declining for the rest of the day.

Key stocks contributing to the decline index included Grameenphone, Islami Bank Bangladesh, Marico Bangladesh, MJL Bangladesh, Berger Paints Bangladesh, Kohinoor Chemicals Company (Bangladesh), Investment Corporation Of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Steel Re-Rolling Mills, Pubali Bank, and NRB Bank Limited.

Power Grid Company of Bangladesh was the top gainer on the day, followed by Islamic Finance & Investment, Navana Pharmaceuticals, Rangpur Dairy & Food Products, and Bangladesh Finance Limited.

Khulna Printing & Packaging placed first among the top losing companies, followed by Express Insurance, Phoenix Finance and Investments, Prime Finance & Investment, and Bangladesh Welding Electrodes Ltd.

EBL Securities, in its daily market commentary, noted that the capital bourse of the country started the week on a gloomy note as profit booking sell pressure remained prevalent across the trading floor since cautious investors remained observant of the market's trend ahead of the upcoming monetary policy announcements for the second half of the fiscal year.

The market observed mild volatility as investors engaged in profit booking following consecutive sessions of buy dominance in the previous week, as they aimed to secure their short-term gains amid the weakened strength of the market's momentum, according to the commentary.

In sector-wise turnover, the textile sector led with 17.9%, followed by pharmaceuticals 12.0% and banking 10.8%. Most sectors experienced losses, with the biggest declines seen in services 1.5%, general insurance 0.9%, and jute 0.9%. 

However, a few sectors posted marginal gains, including ceramic 0.4%, cement 0.4%, and fuel and power 0.4%.

The port city bourse, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), also ended in the red. The Selective Categories Index (CSCX) dropped by 23.6 points, while the All Share Price Index (CASPI) fell by 38.5 points.