Stocks rebounded strongly in the outgoing week, snapping a two-week losing streak amid growing investors' confidence in the market.
Week on week, DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), soared 364 points or 8.77 per cent to settle at 4,513, after hitting a 56-month low.
It was also the biggest single-week gain of DSEX in seven years since 2013.
Market analysts said investors went for buying of shares heavily almost throughout the week following a number of government initiatives to stabilize the ailing capital market.
The market stabilising moves came following 12 months of relentless fall in the share prices that caused the DSEX to fall to a 56-month low on January 14.
A meeting of policymakers in presence of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office on January 16 made six-point proposals, emphasising an increase in fund flow to the market.
The meeting proposed that the government should create mechanisms for ensuring increased participation of banks and non-bank financial institutions expand capacity of Investment Corporation of Bangladesh and provide funds to market intermediaries.
According to weekly market analysis of EBL Securities, Prime Minister's six-point directive towards BSEC to form policies for reviving capital market and Bangladesh Bank's proposal to finance ministry for formation of Tk 100 billion funds for market operators made investors optimistic.
The meeting of policymakers with the Prime Minister made a six-point suggestions including increasing of investment of banks and non-bank financial institutions on the capital market, enhancing investment capacity of ICB and providing loan facility to the merchant bankers and institutional investors to solve prolonged turmoil on the country's capital market.
A leading broker said such gain in the market triggered by the government's market supportive measures which jacked investors' confidence up.
The outgoing week saw five trading days as usual. Of them, four sessions closed higher while one saw marginal correction.
Two other indices also ended higher. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, jumped 136.83 points to finish at 1,543 and the DSE Shariah Index soared 95 points to close at 1,035.
The weekly total turnover on the DSE also rose to Tk 22.65 billion, up from Tk 13.20 billion in the week before.
The daily turnover averaged Tk 4.53 billion, soaring 71 per cent from the previous week's average of Tk 2.64 billion.
All the major sectors ended higher with telecom sector witnessed the highest gain, soaring 14 per cent, followed by food with 12.2 per cent, financial institutions with 9.70 per cent, engineering 8.30 per cent and banking 6.10 per cent.
The market capitalisation of the DSE rose 8.05 per cent to Tk 3,450 billion on Thursday, from Tk 3,193 billion in the previous week.
Gainers outnumbered the losers, as out of 358 issues traded, 328 closed higher and 23 ended lower while 7 issues remained unchanged on the DSE floor in the outgoing week.
LafargeHocim Bangladesh topped the week's turnover chart with shares worth Tk 1.33 billion changing hands during the week.
Investment Corporation of Bangladesh was the week's best performer, posting a gain of 41.09 per cent while the SS Steel was the worst loser, losing 15.63 per cent.
The port city's bourse, Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), also closed higher, with its CSE All Share Price Index - CASPI - soaring 1,144 points to settle at 13,744 and the Selective Categories Index - CSCX - jumping 703 points to finish the week at 8,337.
Here too, the gainers beat the losers as 265 issues closed higher, 27 ended lower and 12 remained unchanged during the week
The port city bourse traded 65.75 million shares and mutual fund units worth Tk 1.65 billion in turnover during the week.
