Stocks opened lower on Tuesday as the cautious investors kept their selling binge amid persistent volatility in the market.
Following the previous two days’ steep decline, the market fell sharply at the opening where the key index of the Dhaka bourse dropped 60 points within the 20 minutes of trading.
After the first hour of trading, it recovered most of the initial losses as DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 8.75 points or 0.13 per cent to stand at 6,473, after the first hour of trading at 11:00 am.
However, two other DSE indices saw a positive trend till then with the DS30 index, comprising blue chips, gaining 2.72 points to reach 2,412 the Shariah Index (DSES) rose 2.56 points to stand at 1,431.
Turnover, another important indicator of the market, stood at Tk 1.62 billion within the first hour of trading.
Market analysts said some investors remained worried about the possible adverse impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on the country’s economy while some were reluctant to make fresh investments in stocks amid persistent volatility.
He noted that some investors also favoured staying on the sidelines as concerns loomed due to rising inflation and global price instabilities amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Of the issues traded till then, 202 declined, 102 advanced, and 66 issues remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Beximco was the most traded stock till the filing of this with shares worth Tk 205 million changing hands, closely followed by JMI Hospital Requisite Manufacturing, Sonali Paper, LafargeHolcim and Square Pharma.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange also saw a downturn till then with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI)—losing 54 to stand at 19,075, while the Selective Categories Index – CSCX shed 32 points to reach 11,444 at 11:00 am.
Of the issues traded till then, 112 declined, 20 advanced, and 19 remained unchanged with Tk 75 million in turnover.