Stocks down amid sluggish turnover

Stocks extended their losing streak for the five consecutive sessions Tuesday with sluggish turnover as investors were remained cautious amid lack of clear direction of the market.

The market opened with a positive note, but could not sustained the positive momentum, eventually, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) settled at 4,610.11, shedding 10.20 points or 0.22 per cent.

The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, lost 3.27 points or 0.18 per cent to 1,746.79. The DSE Shariah Index shed 3.30 points or 0.29 per cent to close at 1,114.41.

Turnover, another important indicator of the market, came down to Tk 4.45 billion, which was 13.59 per cent lower than the previous session’s Tk 5.15 billion.

The losers took a modest lead over the gainers as out of 323 issues traded, 162 closed lower, 117 higher and 44 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.

Power Grid Company dominated the turnover chart with shares worth Tk 125 million changing hands followed by Alltex Industries, Emerald Oil, Saif Powertec and IT Consultants.

Eastern Lubricants was the day’s best performer, posting a rise of 7.49 per cent while Northern Jute Manufacturing Company was the worst loser, slumping 8.71 per cent.

The port city bourse Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also closed lower with its Selective Categories Index, CSCX, falling 27.42 points to finish at 8,618.10.

Losers beat gainers as 145 issues closed lower, 89 higher and 24 remained unchanged on the CSE.

The port city bourse traded 11.03 million shares and mutual fund units worth Tk 292 million in turnover. -FE