Indices close in green despite declines in majority stocks

The equity indices at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) closed in the green terrain on Tuesday despite only a handful of stocks advancing while the rest of them either faced corrections or remained unchanged. 

Out of the 369 issues traded on the DSE, merely 77 advanced, 112 declined and 180 remained unchanged. 

Yet, the broad-based index DSEX advanced by 26 points compared to the previous trading session, and settled at 6,545 on Tuesday.

Also, the Shariah index DSES gained 8 points and blue-chip index DS30 gained 17 points to settle at 1,430 and 2,343 respectively.

The market stayed afloat throughout the session while bargain hunters opted for particular stocks with apprehension of quick gains, wrote EBL Securities in its daily market commentary.

Also, some investors opted for a partial liquidation of their holdings ahead of the national holiday, the commentary reads. 

Participation of investors also increased slightly and the Dhaka bourse turnover increased by 0.4% and stood at Tk1,290 crore, which was Tk1,284 crore on Monday.

On the sectoral front, the pharmaceuticals & chemical sector contributed the highest 22.3% to the turnover, followed by miscellaneous contributing 16.7% and engineering 14.3%.

Jute, travel and pharma gained 3.0%, 2.9% and 1.5% respectively. On the other hand, the services sector faced the highest correction of 2.1%, followed by cement losing 1.3% and ceramic 0.5%.

The port city bourse, Chittagong Stock Exchange, also settled in green terrain. The All Share Price Index (CASPI) advanced by 89.4 points to settle at 19,288.