Stocks down for four sessions in a row

Dhaka stocks fell for the fourth consecutive session yesterday as investors kept booking some of their profits brought by the sudden optimism post ouster of Sheikh Hasina-led government.

The market, defying some efforts to rebound, kept falling slowly since the morning and the broad-based index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), DSEX, closed 1.04% lower at 5,715.

In the four days after the political regime change, the index rose to 6,216 on 11 August from 5,216 on 4 August as large cap stocks including Grameenphone, Robi, British American Tobacco Bangladesh surged sharply to reverse the downtrend.

As soon as the buying spree cooled down, investors preferred profit booking or reducing their cost prices, leading to a decline in the DSEX for six of the past seven sessions.

Following the initial bullish responses, investors now want to wait until the regulatory and economic events unfold as per expectation, according to stockbrokers and analysts.

"Sellers remained predominant across the trading floor, causing the majority of scrips to extend their correction mode," EBL Securities wrote in its daily market commentary yesterday.

"Moreover, cautious investors preferred to remain on the sidelines and monitor the market momentum, which is evident from the decreased market participation as total turnover fell by 35.7% to less than Tk519 crore," it added.

On the sectoral front, banking, pharmaceuticals and telecommunication led the turnover contribution table as they accounted for 23%, 16.3% and 12.4% of the DSE turnover value, respectively.

Most sectors displayed dismal returns, out of which telecommunication, paper and food faced the maximum corrections as their market capitalisation declined by 2.9%, 2.2% and 1.9%, respectively. 

However, jute, fuel and power and tannery sectors managed to avert the fall.

Out of the 397 issues traded on the DSE, 64 advanced, 301 declined and 32 remained unchanged.

Indices in the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also settled on the red terrain as the selling pressure that resumed in the previous session continued.

CSCX, the broad-based index of the port city bourse closed 1.1% lower at 9,892 while turnover there increased by 6% to over Tk9 crore.