Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) – Bangladesh’s stocks witnessed yet another bullish week that ended on Thursday, with key index of the premier bourse hitting 23 months’ high amid growing confidence of investors.
Analysts said the market rallied for the seventh week in a row as stockbrokers’ proposal to form a special fund worth BDT 60 billion to increase the supply of money to the capital market coupled with Lafarge’s acquisition news boosting the investors’ confidence further.
The week witnessed four trading sessions as the market was closed on Tuesday due to public holiday on the occasion of Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi.
Of them, first session faced profit taking correction while last three closed higher with increased participation from investors.
The benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) went up by 32.91 points or 0.67 percent to finish the week at 23 months’ high at 4,925.72 points over the previous week, which was the highest level of DSEX since January 15, 2015, when DSEX was 4,956.72.
LankaBangla Securities, said, “The market has passed another remarkable week with broad index reaching crossing the 4,900-mark after 23 months as enthusiastic investors continued on buying spree”.
The two other indices also ended higher. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, advanced 10.34 points or 0.58 percent to settle at 1,806.01 points.
The DSE Shariah Index rose 10.81 points or 0.93 percent to close at 1,172.18 points.
The port city’s bourse, Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), also closed higher with its Selective Categories Index, CSCX, advancing 12.08 points or 0.13 percent to close at 9,163.74 points.
The total turnover for the week stood at BDT 36.53 billion, which was 16 percent lower than the previous week’s BDT 43.51 billion, as last week saw four trading sessions instead of five in the week before.
The daily turnover averaged at BDT 9.13 billion, registering an increase of 4.94 percent over the previous week’s average of BDT 8.70 billion.
Sheltech Brokerage, said, “The market faced profit taking on the first session of the week but recovered on the second session as engineering stocks took the lead for following two sessions and cement took the lead on last session after the news of Lafarge’s acquiring of Holcim Bangladesh”.
Of the 329 issues traded, 27 closed higher, 172 lower and 30 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor last the week.
Bangladesh Building Systems dominated the week’s turnover chart with 38.21 million shares of BDT 1.82 billion changing hands, followed by Lafarge Surma Cement, Ratanpur Steel Re-rolling Mills, Appollo Ispat and MJL Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Building Systems was also the week’s best performer, posting a 22.80 percent rise, while Modern Dying was the worst loser, slumping by 10.34 percent.
BBN/SS/AD