Economic Reporter :
Country’s premier bourse, Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), on Monday suffered another free-fall as nervous investors continued their sell-off amidst growing concern over the impacts of COVID-19 endemic.
A group of investors urged the bourse to stop trading in order to halt the massive fall and give some relief to nervous investors.
Market analysts said the massive sell-offs witnessed after the news that the three new cases of coronavirus confirmed in Bangladesh and deepening fears about the spread which might affects the country’s economy.
The prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange slumped below the ‘psychological’ threshold of 3,800-mark amid incessant selling by investors.
DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 196.75 points or 4.95 per cent to settle at 3,772. The index sank the below the 3,800-mark, lowest in six and a half years since October 21, 2013.
Two other indices also saw free-fall. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, lost 68.20 points to close at 1,265 and the DSES (Shariah) index shed 52.34 points to settle at 874. Turnover, an important indicator of the market, stood at Tk 4.06 billion on the country’s premier bourse, advancing 8.84 per cent over the previous day’s turnover of Tk 3.73 billion.
Losers took a strong lead over the gainers, as out of 355 issues traded, 333 closed lower, 10 ended higher and 12 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
A total number of 147,028 trades were executed in the day’s trading session with trading volume of 186.81 million shares and mutual fund units.
The market-cap of the DSE also fell to Tk 2,988 billion, from Tk 3,111 billion in the previous session.
Square Pharma topped the turnover chart with shares worth Tk 247 million changing hands, closely followed by Monno Ceramic, Orion Pharma, Brac Bank and BATBC.
FAS Finance was the day’s best performer, posting a gain of 7.89 per cent while IPDC Finance was the worst loser, losing 14.10 per cent.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange saw steep decline with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI)-slumped 577 points to close at 11,576 and the Selective Categories Index – CSCX -shedding 350 points to finish at 7,017.
Here too, the losers beat gainers, as 235 issues closed lower, 25 ended higher and 11 remained unchanged on the CSE. The port city bourse traded 8.55 million shares and mutual fund units worth more than Tk 134 million in turnover.
“Investors are panicking owing to the recent fall, so many of them sold off shares,” said Mostaq Ahmed Sadeque, a former president of the Dhaka Stock Exchange Brokers Association.
“The coronavirus affected stock markets worldwide and local stock investors fear that it would hamper the economy and hammer the earnings of the listed companies,” said Sadeque, also Managing Director of Investment Promotion of Services, a brokerage house.
Banks have started to inject funds in the market by taking loans from the Bangladesh Bank under a special package drawn up to prop up the ailing market. The move had lifted the mood of investor to some extent. But the positive sentiment was short-lived in the face of growing threat of coronavirus, Sadeque added.
