Modest correction seen after 9 days’ rally

Stocks saw modest correction Monday with falling turnover, snapping a nine-session rally as investors booked some profit ahead of Eid festival. Only three trading sessions are left ahead of Eid vacation.
The market opened with an upbeat mood, but could not sustain as the session progressed. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) shed 21.85 points or 0.43 per cent to close at 5,050.34 points, after gaining 362 points in nine sessions.
The two others indices also ended in the red. The DS30, comprising blue chips, lost 8.35 points or 0.42 per cent to close at 1,958.89 points. The DSE Shariah Index slipped 1.68 points or 0.14 per cent to close at 1,197.43 points.
The total turnover on DSE came down to Tk 9.02 billion, registering a decline of 18.04 per cent over the previous session's value of Tk 11.01 billion.
The investors remained focused on power, pharmaceuticals and engineering - the sectors that accounted for 22 per cent, 16 per cent and 13 per cent respectively of the day's total turnover.
"Breaking down last nine sessions' uptrend, market came in negative territory. Profit booking tendency, especially in small and mini cap derailed market movement," said IDLC Investments, in its regular market analysis.
"Investors were re-assessing market sentiment ahead of upcoming Eid-ul-Azha. Subsequently, some cashing out took place, dwindling overall market scenario," said the merchant bank.
LankaBangla Securities said: "Stocks showed a downside move, offsetting some of the gains posted in previous session. The large-cap pharma and power stocks pulled back sharp as the sell-off pressure came on last week before Eid holiday".
"Traders seemed to be cashing in on some of the recent strength in the markets amid strong economic indicators," said the stock broker.
"The prime index fluctuated 104 points during the trading session as investors' indecisiveness regarding the whole market loomed large," said International Leasing Securities.
However, the price appreciation of selected large cap stocks in the final hour of the session restored some confidence among the investors even though most of the major sectors posted moderate price correction, said the International Leasing.
"After the recent 9-day bullish run, the market finally witnessed its long due correction Monday," said BRAC EPL, a stock brokerage.
Among the large cap sectors, banks and pharmaceuticals went up by 0.34 per cent and 0.45 per cent respectively.

babulfexpress@gmail.com