Stocks close flat amid volatility

Stocks closed flat Wednesday after volatile trading throughout the session with turnover decline further as investors witnessed a cautious trading amid profit booking tendency. The prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) --- DSEX --- went up slightly by 1.95 points or 0.04 per cent to close at 4,811.49 points from previous session. The DSE Shariah Index (DSES) gained 2.80 points or 0.28 per cent to 982.52 points. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips also managed to close positive with 0.06 points gain to 1,663.75 points. The total turnover on DSE came down to Tk 6.20 billion, registering 18.67 per cent decline over the previous session’s turnover value of Tk 7.71 billion. The losers took a modest lead over the gainers as out of 293 issues traded, 153 declined, 110 gained and 30 issues closed unchanged on the DSE floor. The market capitalization of the DSE stood at Tk 2,894.92 billion against Tk 2,892.48 billion in the previous session. Jamuna Oil dominated the top turnover chart with shares worth Tk 312.90 million changing hands followed by Meghna Petroleum, Generation Next Fashion, Square Pharma and GrameenPhone. Rahim Textile was also the day’s highest gainer, posting a rise of 8.48 per cent while Savar Refractories was the day’s worst losers, slumping by 6.52 per cent. However, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) closed marginally lower, with its Selective Categories Index – CSCX lost 8.07 points to close at 9,446.43 points. Losers beat gainers 143 to 63, with 21 issues remaining unchanged at the port city bourse that traded 14.16 million shares and mutual fund units, turnover value of Tk 504.15 million.