Stocks extend gains amid lockdown
DSEX gains 0.98% to reach 5,310
Stocks witnessed a strong rally on Thursday as positive attitudes of investors beat worries over a weeklong lockdown put in place from Wednesday to flatten the curve of the coronavirus pandemic.
However, the government has allowed the stock trading to remain open on a limited scale from 10:00am to 12:30pm, in parallel with the banking hours, during the nationwide lockdown.
DSEX, the broad-based index at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), gained 0.98% or 51.68 points to reach 5,310.
According to the daily market commentary of EBL Securities Ltd, the gain in stocks was driven by increased confidence of investors and their buying interest in selective stocks that were trading at low prices.
Turnover at the DSE increased 9% to Tk556.42 crore on Thursday, compared to the previous session.
On the sectoral front, general insurance contributed a maximum of 29.58% to the daily turnover of DSE. Miscellaneous and non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) each followed with slightly less than 15% of the turnover.
Most of the sectors observed persuasive performance on Thursday, out of which the mutual fund gained 6.8%, while NBFIs and cement generated returns of around 3% each over the session.
Only the ceramic sector observed a 1.9% correction.
Out of the 355 issues traded at the DSE, 216 advanced, 90 declined, and 49 remained unchanged.
At the Chittagong Stock Exchange, main index CASPI gained 1.21% or 184.76 points to settle at 15,379.