Stocks down amid profit-taking

Indices came out of its four-day long gaining streak on Tuesday and slid marginally as investors opted for a profit booking strategy. 

The key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX shed 26 points or 0.6 percent to close the day at 4,408 points. 

DSES, the Shariah-based index, went down 7 points or 0.7 percent to stand at 1,008 points while DS30, the index comprised of blue-chips, lost 8 points or 0.5 percent to stand at 1,507 points. 

At the port city bourse, Caspi – the prime index – lost 56 points or 0.4 percent to close at 13,424 points. 

The market started with a declining approach Tuesday as many investors kept liquidating their holdings to make quick profits due to recent price appreciation, said the Daily Market Review of EBL Securities Ltd.

Consequently, most of the sectors posted negative movements which led the market slide Tuesday. 

Among the sectors with large market capitalisations, only financial institutions exhibited a gain of 3.5 percent, depicting investors' optimism in financial stocks. 

Meanwhile, a selling pressure of 2.1 percent was observed on telecom stocks, thanks to the 1.8 percent price erosion of the large-cap stock Grameenphone. 

The banks posted a negative movement of 0.3 percent and pharmaceutical sector registered a price adjustment of 0.4 percent. 

The recent announcement of finance ministry to make funds available for private commercial banks and financial institutions as part of efforts to lower interest rate to single-digit led the slide in banking stocks, showed the Daily Market Review of UCB Capital Management Ltd. 

Investors took this move negatively as lowering down the lending rate would take a toll on the profitability of banks, added the report. 

The pharmaceuticals sector dominated the sector-wise turnover board contributing 16.4 percent to the total turnover worth Tk406.8 crore on the DSE trading floor. 

Square Pharmaceuticals Ltd led the stock-wise turnover table with Tk31.6 crore turnover value. The stock inched down 0.4 percent price closing at Tk195.1 per share. 

However, the latest buy declarations of Ratna Patra and Anjan Chowdhury, two of the directors of the Square Pharma, failed to save the stock's price correction Tuesday. Both the directors have expressed their intentions to buy 3 lakh shares each at prevailing market price through DSE and CSE within next 30 working days. 

Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) topped the gainers' table advancing 10 percent closing at Tk85.1 per share while Silco Pharmaceuticals Ltd was the day's worst loser shedding a massive 10 percent price to close at Tk26.7 per share. 

The number of losers was greater than the number of gainers Tuesday, as among 356 issues traded, 79 gained, 237 declined and 40 finished unchanged on the DSE trading floor.