Business Desk :
Stocks extended their rally for the sixth straight sessions Tuesday, with turnover hitting a fresh seven-month high, thanks to higher participation of general investors.
The market opened higher and the key index rose about 52 points in the first three hours of the trading, but the rest of the session wiped off most of the gains amid the short-term profit-booking tendency among cautious investors.
At the end of the session, DSEX, the core index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, settled at 6,315.82, gaining 15.69 points or 0.25 per cent.
The DSEX surged 167 points or 2.72 per cent in the past six trading days.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, rose further and amounted to Tk 14.87 billion on the prime bourse, which was 0.61 per cent higher than the previous day’s turnover of Tk 14.78 billion.
It was the biggest single-day transaction since January 20 this year, when the turnover totalled a record Tk 16.01 billion.
Two other indices of the DSE also ended higher. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, advanced 18.02 points to finish at 2,265 and the DSE Shariah index soared 7.60 points to close at 1,387.
Market insiders said stocks extended the rally with increased turnover as optimistic investors continued their buying spree amid growing confidence in the market.
Retail investors remained active in the market, hoping that the market will not fall further due to the regulatory assurance that the ‘floor price’ will remain in place until further order, said a merchant banker.
Losers, however, took a modest lead over the gainers, as out of 381 issues traded, 169 closed lower, 123 higher and 89 others remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Beximco became the most-traded stock with shares worth Tk 1.08 billion changing hands, followed by Orion Pharma, Olympic Industries, Bangladesh Spinning Corporation and Delta Life Insurance.
RSRS Steels was the day’s top gainer, gaining 10 per cent while BIFC was the day’s worst loser, shedding 7.96 per cent.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended higher with the CSE All Share Price Index (CASPI) gaining 58 points to settle at 18,570 and its Selective Categories Index (CSCX) rising 35 points to close at 11,128. Of the issues traded, 128 declined, 99 advanced and 78 issues remained unchanged.
The port-city bourse traded 15.07 million shares and mutual fund units with a turnover value of Tk 430 million.
