Stocks opened marginally lower on Wednesday as the cautious investors booked some profit on quick-gaining issues amid the revised trading hours.
Trading on the bourses started at 9:30am from today which will continue until 1:50pm. Earlier, the trading schedule was 10:00am to 2:30pm.
The revised trading hour schedule came in line with the government’s instructions to reschedule office timing in order to cut electricity consumption.
Following the previous six days’ upturn, DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, went down by4.58 points or 0.07 per cent to stand at 6,311, after the first two hours of trading at 11:30am.
The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, also shed 5.15 points to finish at 2,260. However, the DSE Shariah Index (DSES) gained 0.02 points to reach 1,387 at 11:30am.
Turnover, another important indicator of the market, soared to Tk 4.86 billion after two hours of trading.
Market insiders said that some investors engaged in booking profit on sector-wise stocks as the market gained in the past six trading days.
Besides, DSE managing director Tarique Amin Bhuiyan resigned from his post on Tuesday, which also made investors cautious, they said.
Of the issues traded till then, 132 advanced, 135 declined and 105 issues remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Orion Pharma was the most traded stock till then with shares worth Tk 513 million changing hands, followed by Metro Spinning Mills, Summit Alliance Port, Orion Infusion and BSCCL.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange also saw a downward trend till then with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI)—losing 16 points to stand at 18,554 while the Selective Categories Index – CSCX shed 10 points to reach 11,118, also at 11:30am.
Of the issues traded till then 96 declined, 63 advanced and 66 remained unchanged with turnover of Tk 114 million till then.
