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Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - Bangladesh’s stocks extended their gaining streak for the third straight sessions on Thursday as investors continued their buying spree on large-cap issues.
DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up by 24.76 points or 0.41 percent to settle at 5,950. It was the highest level of DSEX since February 18, 2018.
Analysts said investors kept their buying appetite on telecommunication, banking and power sectors’ stocks, taking the prime index more than 11 months high.
A leading broker said investors have regained confidence in the market after the elections and chose the stocks which year-ended in December amid dividend expectation.
Insurance stocks also continued to surge as investors are increasingly shifting their focus to the insurance sector, he said.
Out of 47 insurance companies, 43 closed higher and four closed in the red. The insurance sector also gained more than 5.0 percent.
The investors showed their buying appetite on large-cap stocks from the beginning of the session which continued till end of the session amid modest volatility.
The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, also went up by 5.97 points to close at 2,049. However, the DSE Shariah Index (DSES) saw a fractional loss of 0.18 points to close at 1,321.
Turnover, another important indicator of the market, stood at BDT 10.37 billion on Thursday which was BDT 10.45 billion the previous day.
International Leasing Securities said the optimistic investors showed their interest in bank, financial institution and insurance sectors stocks.
However, the some investors booked profit on pharmaceuticals, miscellaneous, food and mutual fund sectors stocks, said the stockbroker.
A total number of 209,846 trades were executed in the day’s trading session with trading volume of 335.63 million shares and mutual fund units.
The market-cap of DSE increased to BDT 4,199 billion which was BDT 4,185 billion in the previous day.
Out of 346 issues traded, 186 advanced, 124 declined and 36 issues remained unchanged on the DSE floor.
United Power dominated the turnover chart with 1.19 million shares worth BDT 444 million changing hands, closely followed by Premier Bank, United Finance, IFIC Bank and Dhaka Bank.
Continental Insurance was the day’s best performer, posting a gain of 9.96 percent while Northern Jute Manufacturing Company was the worst loser, losing 6.21 percent.
Port city bourse Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) ended higher with the CSE All Share Price Index – CASPI – gaining 53 points to settle at 18,265 points and Selective Categories Index – CSCX –advancing 32 points to finish at 11,036.
The gainers beat the losers as 144 issues closed higher, 102 lower and 27 remained unchanged.
The port city bourse traded 17.46 million shares and mutual fund units worth BDT 391 million in turnover.
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