Stocks inch down amid short-term profit booking

Stock indices at the Dhaka and Chattogram bourses inched down on Wednesday with investors preferring short-term profit booking after two consecutive green sessions.

DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), declined by 11.5 points or 0.17% to settle at 6,731.

The recent short-lived rally in the capital market enticed many investors to sell-off securities as most of the stocks observed an upsurge in price after BSEC announced to relax margin loan requirements for category-changing stocks, EBL Securities wrote in their daily market commentary.

The index on Monday began a recovery from its 19-week low of 6,609 points and went up to 6,677 on Wednesday morning.  

Inflation worries and the rising demand for loans in the private sector had added to investors caution as the two factors could hinder fund inflow to stocks, said analysts.

Private sector credit growth has reached the pre-pandemic level, according to the Bangladesh Bank.

However, many investors still favored sitting on cash amidst market volatility, as a result, turnover declined by 15.7% to Tk735 crore on Wednesday.

On the sectoral front, miscellaneous, pharmaceuticals, and banking sectors contributed most to the daily turnover - more than by 10% each.

The majority of the stocks closed in red territory. Out of the 377 issues traded in the DSE, 133 advanced, 196 declined, and 48 remained unchanged.

Majority of the sectors displayed mixed performance, out of which paper, jute, and life insurance led the table of gaining sectors.

On the other hand, cement, non-bank financial institutions, and service sectors' market capitalisation declined by more than 1%.

Indices of the Chittagong Stock Exchange also declined moderately, while daily turnover in the port-city bourse slightly increased to over Tk53 crore.