Special Correspondent: The key index, DSEX, of the Dhaka bourse extended its losing streak for two consecutive weeks as a selling spree across the trading board occurred, with investors preferring to offload their holdings to limit further losses.
The DSEX lost 107.91 points, or 2.07%, to settle at a 5-month low of 5,097 points, marking the steepest weekly decline so far this year.
The blue-chip index DS30 fell by 52.51 points or 2.72% to end at 1,875.39, while the Shariah-based DSES dropped 29.25 points or 2.49% to close at 1,143.71. The large-cap index CDSET also lost 16.06 points or 1.53%, ending the week at 1,034.05 points.
Despite these losses, the indices still maintain year-to-date (YTD) gains: DSEX (+2.28%), DS30 (+3.32%), DSES (+2.16%), and CDSET (+3.01%).
Weekly Stock Market Analysis shows that investor participation dropped notably, with average daily turnover falling 18.1% to Tk 3,990 million compared to Tk 4,873 million the previous week. Investors were primarily active in the pharmaceuticals sector (14.0%), followed by banking (10.1%) and food (9.4%).
All sectors closed in the red, except General Insurance, which edged up by 0.8%. The worst-performing sector was Mutual Funds, which plunged 6.1%.
The market traded for four sessions last week, beginning negatively on Sunday (-0.68%) and continuing the downward trend on Tuesday (-0.73%), Wednesday (-0.51%), and Thursday (-0.16%).
The decline was driven by investor concerns over the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission's (BERC) unexpected gas price hike, ongoing IMF loan negotiations, and looming tax hikes hinted at during the National Board of Revenue's budget talks.
According to EBL Securities' weekly review, the market witnessed a widespread selling frenzy as investors opted to exit positions to curb further losses. The report noted that while there was some bargain-hunting in low-priced stocks, bearish sentiment prevailed throughout the week.
The report also highlighted the cautious tone in the market, noting that despite positive turnover trends in previous weeks, uncertainty persists. Investors are waiting for clearer economic signals before regaining confidence in a sustained market recovery.
