Investors pass a tough week amid curfew, internet blackout jitters
Amid the ongoing uncertainties, participation of investors remained low as total turnover came down to Tk660 crore in total as the market saw only two trading sessions
In a challenging last week for the stock market, investors grappled with heightened volatility triggered by curfews and internet blackouts.
The restrictions, aimed at quelling unrest, have significantly disrupted business operations and fuelled economic uncertainty, causing jitters among market participants, said market insiders.
During the stipulated five working days of the last week, investors could take part in trading shares for only two days, as the remaining sessions were closed due to the unexpected general holidays.
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In the first trading session of the last week, which took place on Wednesday, the key index DSEX of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) dropped 93 points but later recovered 63 points in the session the next day.
The DESX finally slid almost 33 points or 0.60% to close at 5,414 on Thursday.
The blue-chip DS30 index, a group of 30 prominent companies, lost more than 20 points to close at 1,933, while the DSES index, which represents shariah-based companies, dropped 8 points to 1,183 throughout the last week.
Amid the ongoing uncertainties, participation of investors remained low as total turnover came down to Tk660 crore in total as the market saw only two trading sessions.
Subsequently, the daily average turnover dropped to Tk330 crore last week with turnover hitting an 18-month low on Wednesday.
The EBL Securities in its market commentary said the overall market sentiment still remains subdued as cautious investors still shy away from taking positions in equities amidst uncertainties regarding the market's outlook, being apprehensive of the prevailing unrest.
Ashequr Rahman, managing director of Midway Securities, told TBS that trading time has been rescheduled due to the curfew, and many investors could not trade on Wednesday due to disruptions in internet connectivity across the country.
However, after the internet connection was fully restored, investor participation increased on Thursday, he added.
The pharmaceutical sector kept its dominance in the turnover chart, accounting for 20% of the weekly turnover, followed by food with 12% and bank with 11%.
All the large-cap sectors posted negative performance. Engineering posted a loss of 1.64%, followed by general insurance at 1.6%, non-bank financial institutions at 1.45%, power at 0.91%, food at 0.36% and banking at 0.25%.
Square Pharma became the most-traded stock with shares worth Tk38 crore changing hands, followed by Orion Infusion, Lovello, Agni Systems and Sea Pearl Beach Resorts.
Techno Drugs was the top gainer, rising 20.9% while Khan Brothers PP Woven Bag Industries was the worst loser, shedding 5.8%.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended lower with its All Share Price Index — CASPI — losing 151 points to 15,415 and the Selective Categories Index — CSCX — shedding 86 points to 9,285.
