Stocks extended the rally for the fourth straight week that ended on Thursday as the investors continued to bet on major sector shares despite the rising Covid-19 cases.
Week on week, DSEX, the prime index of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), surged by 88.46 points or 1.26 per cent to settle at 7,105. The DSEX added a total of 403 points in the past four consecutive weeks.
All the five trading days of the week ended on a positive note.
Two other DSE indices also followed suit. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, rose 19.08 points to finish at 2,636 and the DSE Shariah Index (DSES) advanced 6.69 points to close at 1,508.
The week's total turnover reached Tk 82.43 billion on the prime bourse as against Tk 78.32 billion the previous week.
The daily turnover averaged out at Tk 16.48 billion on the country's premier bourse, climbing further by 5.24 per cent over the previous week's average of Tk 15.66 billion.
Market analysts said stocks extended the rally as the buoyant investors, beating the Covid-19 worries, continued to pour their funds in large-cap stocks.
Investors hope that the economic activities of the country will continue as usual, according to a merchant banker.
The investors put their fresh bets on stocks anticipating that the Omicron variant would not be as devastating as previously thought, he said.
He noted that the investors remained upbeat about certain large-cap stocks as some listed companies posted higher-than-expected quarterly earnings results during the week.
Price appreciation of several large-cap stocks such as ACI, Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, Bangladesh Steel Re-Rolling Mills, BRAC Bank, Beximco and BRAC Bank kept the market afloat, according to EBL Securities.
Most investors focused on sector specific issues that were trading at a very lucrative price level despite the fact that Covid-19 cases are rising in the country, commented International Leasing Securities.
ACI posted a 12.43 per cent gain during the week, followed by Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (10.41 per cent), Bangladesh Steel Re-Rolling Mills (8.30 per cent), Beximco (7.65 per cent) and BRAC Bank (2.63 per cent).
However, some investors opted to book profit on sector-specific issues.
Market capitalisation of the DSE also rose 0.04 per cent to Tk 5,652 billion on Thursday, up from Tk 5,649 billion in the week before.
Major sectors posted mixed performances with miscellaneous logging the highest gain of 7.0 per cent, followed by engineering (1.70 per cent), pharma (1.60 per cent), food (0.90 per cent), and banking (0.30 per cent).
On the other hand, banking, cement, telecoms, power and non-bank financial institutions suffered losses of 2.50 per cent, 2.0 per cent, 0.70 per cent and 0.30 per cent respectively.
Of the traded issues, 224 issues advanced, 139 declined and 23 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Beximco -- the flagship company of Beximco Group -- topped the turnover list with shares worth Tk 6.96 billion changing hands, followed by Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (Tk 3.87 billion), Fortune Shoes (Tk 3.70 billion), Saif Powertec (Tk 3.16 billion), and GPH Ispat (Tk 2.30 billion).
Pharma Aids was the week's top gainer, soaring 26.36 per cent while the 'Z' category Tallu Spinning Mills was the worst loser, shedding 15.75 per cent following its 'no' dividend declaration news.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended higher, with the CSE All Share Price Index (CASPI) rising 272 points to settle at 20,817 and its Selective Categories Index (CSCX) gaining 162 points to close at 12,504.
Of the issues traded, 201 advanced, 123 declined and 26 remained unchanged on the CSE trading floor.
The port city's bourse traded 65.86 million shares and mutual fund units with turnover value of Tk 2.30 billion.
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