Stocks see slight uptick after CA’s meeting
The high-level meeting, chaired by the chief adviser at his official residence in Dhaka, also focused on strategies for developing and strengthening the capital market
Stocks surged slightly today (12 May) following a meeting between Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and capital market regulators and stakeholders on Sunday, in a bid to address the prolonged slump in the market.
The high-level meeting, chaired by the chief adviser at his official residence in Dhaka, also focused on strategies for developing and strengthening the capital market.
The meeting was attended by Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) Chairman Khondoker Rashed Maqsood, and Financial Institutions Division Secretary Nazma Mobarek.
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Following the meeting, which was held on a government holiday, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) – DSEX – rose by 19 points to close at 4,921 today, the first working day of the week. The session began at 4,902 points but saw fluctuations throughout the day.
Despite the gain, turnover, one of the key market indicators, slightly declined to Tk364.09 crore up from Tk366.06 crore in the previous trading session as investor participation remained subdued, according to market insiders.
Most of the stocks traded on the DSE saw price gains, with 189 advancing – including 18 firms that hit the upper limit of the single-day circuit breaker – while 160 declined and 46 remained unchanged.
Among the 216 stocks in the A category, 122 advanced, 80 declined, and 14 remained unchanged. In contrast, most B category stocks declined, with only 26 advancing, 48 declining, and 9 remaining unchanged. In the Z category, 41 advanced, 32 declined, and 23 remained unchanged, according to DSE data.
Market data showed that stocks opened on a positive note, but momentum lasted only seven minutes, till 10:07am, before selling pressure dragged the index down by 18 points. Later, from 10:49am, as buying interest gained strength, the market began to recover and eventually closed on a positive note with a 19-point gain.
Northern Islami Life Insurance topped the gainers' list with a 10% rise in its share price to Tk27.5 each, followed by Khan Brothers PP Woven Bag Industries, which rose 9.97% to Tk123.5. SBAC Bank gained 9.87% to Tk8.9, IFIC Bank First Mutual Fund rose 9.75% to Tk4.5, and CAPM IBBL Islamic Mutual Fund advanced 9.67% to Tk10.2 per share.
On the losing end, Baraka Power fell the most, declining 6.40% to Tk11.7 each, followed by Premier Leasing and Finance by 6.25% to Tk3, Union Capital by 4.44% to Tk4.3, Progressive Life Insurance by 4.36% to Tk50.4, and Shinepukur Ceramics by 4.11% to Tk21 each.
New directives from CA's meeting
During Sunday's meeting, based on the issues discussed, the chief adviser announced five key directives to revitalise the stock market.
Among them was a decision to bring profitable state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and multinational companies (MNCs) with government stakes to the stock market.
"For example, the government holds shares in Unilever. Measures will be taken to offload those shares in the market," said Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam.
Prof Yunus instructed the BSEC to explore incentive mechanisms to attract large domestic private companies – some of which have annual turnovers of $2–3 billion – in the capital market.
He specifically mentioned major business conglomerates like City Group and Meghna Group, which have large ventures, and directed authorities to take steps to bring them to the market.
In another directive, the chief adviser called for the formation of an independent team of foreign experts to recommend reforms for the capital market within three months.
"These experts, with no vested interest in Bangladesh's capital market, will be tasked with delivering actionable reform recommendations," said Shafiqul.
The country's stock market has remained in a downward trajectory since August last year, as the Rashed Maqsood-led commission reportedly failed to earn the trust of stakeholders and investors by addressing the issues that have plagued the market in the past.
The DSEX, which stood above 6,000 points when Maqsood took office on 18 August under the interim government, dropped below 5,000 points, hitting 4,802 on 7 May – the lowest level since 23 November 2020.
