Floor pricing drives up stock indices
DSEX jumped 2.57%, the highest gain in 19 months
Indices at both the bourses jumped on Sunday, bagging around 2% gains each, thanks to the floor price mechanism recently reintroduced by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC).
DSEX, the broad-based index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) opened nearly a 100 points higher as the majority of scrips had to open higher than Thursday's closing price due to regulatory floor pricing requirements, while buyers pushed the index another 55 points higher to over 6,133 at close of business.
The 2.57% gain of the index on Sunday was the biggest single-day gain since 3 January, 2021.
On Thursday afternoon, the BSEC ordered the bourses to make the previous five sessions' average closing prices of individual listed scrips their floor price, and as all but a very few had gone down over the week, the floor pricing gave an upward push to most scrips on Sunday.
With the effective protection against the fear of daily capital erosion, investor participation in trading rose 29% in the DSE to Tk568 crore, and most scrips had buyers.
Stockbrokers were relieved by the 2% daily downward limit for scrips that had been causing a stagnant, buyerless situation for a large number of stocks last week.
The reinstated floor price mechanism curbed major sell-offs by panic-stricken investors and helped restore the ailing market, EBL Securities wrote in its daily market commentary.
"The market skyrocketed as investors rushed to pour in fresh funds, taking advantage of the floor price," it added.
DSEX hit a 14 month low of 5,963 on Thursday amid panic about the macroeconomic situation and a deteriorating dollar exchange rate.
However, the floor price mechanism is expected to curb market turnover in the coming sessions as it might hinder the opportunity for prompt liquidation of securities, EBL Securities analysts fear.
Many institutional investors were annoyed by the unconventional regulatory interference in the market, while most retail investors lauded the protection they are enjoying.
Textiles dominated the DSE's sectoral turnover table contributing nearly 22% to the daily transaction value, followed by general insurance, and pharmaceuticals.
No sector displayed a negative return, while general insurance, paper and printing, and life insurance, led the gainers with 8.8%, 4.8%, and 4% gains respectively.
Of the 382 issues traded, 362 advanced, 7 declined, and 13 remained unchanged.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange also settled in the green while turnover in the port city bourse inched up to Tk12.4 crore from Tk11.1 crore.