Stocks tumbled on Sunday as the risk-averse investors went on heavy sell-offs on major sectors, fearing further fall of stock prices.
DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 58.60 points or 1.19 per cent to settle at nearly seven-week low to 4,858 points.
Market analysts said investors dumped their holdings from major sector stocks fearing further fall as experts warned that the second wave of Covid-19 may hit Bangladesh in winter.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also asked all to be prepared to tackle a possible rise in Covid-19 infections in the upcoming winter.
World Bank’s forecasts of lower GDP growth for Bangladesh also prompted investors to sell shares, said a leading broker.
Bangladesh’s GDP growth is projected at 1.60 per cent for the current fiscal year as the country struggles with the devastating impact of the lingering Covid-19 pandemic, the World Bank said in its twice-a-year-regional update on Thursday last.
Two other indices also ended lower. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, lost 21.77 points to finish at 1,647 and the DSE Shariah Index fell 10.16 points to close at 1,098.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, stood at Tk 8.75 billion, which was 10.34 per cent higher than the previous session’s turnover of Tk 7.93 billion.
The retail investors sold stocks for booking profit while institutional investors remained on the sidelines, said an analyst at a leading brokerage firm.
He said many investors are also moving to the primary market as the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) approved a good number of initial public offerings in the past two months.
Losers took a strong lead over the gainers as out of 355 issues traded, 239 ended lower, 80 closed higher while 36 issues remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
A total number of 181,853 trades were executed in the day’s trading session with a trading volume of 399.78 million shares and mutual fund units.
The insurance sector dominated the turnover chart with Rupali Insurance topped the turnover list with shares worth Tk 275 million changing hands, closely followed by Republic Insurance, Federal Insurance, BD Finance and Walton Hi-Tech Industries.
Rupali Life Insurance was the day’s best performer, posting a gain of 9.90 per cent while BIFC was the worst loser, losing 9.83 per cent.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange also ended lower with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI)—losing 149 points to close at 13,880 while the Selective Categories Index – CSCX shedding 86 points to close at 8,337.
Of the issues traded, 175 declined, 69 advanced and 29 remained unchanged on the CSE.
The port city bourse traded 11.01 million shares and mutual fund units with turnover value of more than Tk 222 million.
