Stocks ended higher last week as optimistic investors kept their appetite for large-cap issues.
Brokers said most of the investors were active on sector-specific stocks throughout the week while some were busy rebalancing their portfolios in the wake of declarations of latest quarterly earnings by the companies.
A section of investors, however, remained on the sidelines as they were closely watching the country's political situation in the run-up to the national election, said a leading broker.
The last week featured four trading sessions as Wednesday was a public holiday, and all four sessions closed green.
Week-on-week, DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up by 61.32 points or 1.17 per cent to settle at 5,306.
Two other indices -- the DS30 index and the DSE Shariah Index (DSES) -- also finished higher.
The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, rose 12.85 points to finish at 1,869 and the DSE Shariah Index advanced 19.44 points to close at 1,227.
Total turnover, however, fell to Tk 26.29 billion on the DSE, which was Tk 27.65 billion in the previous week, as last week saw four sessions instead of regular five sessions.
The daily turnover averaged Tk 6.57 billion, registering an increase of 19 per cent over the previous week's average of Tk 5.52 billion.
International Leasing Securities said the market ended higher riding on the news that Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) raised Tk 7.50 billion from the issuance of subordinated bonds as part of its market supportive measures.
The investors' increased concentration on the bank, pharma and financial institution stocks pushed the core index to one-month high, said the stockbroker.
The stockbroker noted that some of the investors were reshuffling their investment based on the latest quarterly earnings disclosures.
The textile sector continued to dominate the week's turnover chart, grabbing 21 per cent of the week's total turnover. It was followed by the pharmaceuticals (17 per cent) and power (14 per cent).
The market capitalisation of the DSE advanced 0.44 per cent to Tk 3,830 billion, from Tk 3,813 billion in the previous week.
Among the major sectors, pharmaceuticals posted the highest gain of 3.32 per cent, followed by food (1.56 per cent), banking (0.91 per cent) and financial institutions (0.57 per cent).
The power sector witnessed the highest correction of 2.92 per cent, followed by telecommunications (1.0 per cent) and engineering sector (0.23 per cent).
A listed company -- Keya Cosmetics -- recommended 10 per cent stock dividend for the year ending on June 30, 2018.
Of the 346 issues traded, 163 closed higher, 154 ended lower and 29 issues remained unchanged on the DSE floor last week.
The United Power topped the week's turnover chart with 3.65 million shares worth Tk 1.16 billion changing hands during the week.
The other turnover leaders were Khulna Power Company (Tk 1.13 billion), Intech (Tk 990 million), Saiham Textile (Tk 620 million) and Brac Bank (Tk 599 million).
Kattali Textile was the week's best performer, posting a gain of 25.48 per cent while Monno Jute Stafflers was the biggest loser, shedding 71.68 per cent, following its price adjustment after record date.
The port city's bourse, Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), also ended higher with its CSE All Share Price Index -- CASPI -- gaining 229 points to settle at 16,284.
The Selective Categories Index -- CSCX -- also rose 146 points to close the week at 9,875.
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