Stocks dive as investors stay away

The stock market slipped into the red in the outgoing week, snapping a two-week winning streak, as investors opted to realise short-term gains amid rising political tensions.
The risk-averse investors reduced their market exposure during the week owing to concerns regarding the market momentum as the political atmosphere heated up once again, market experts said.
Also, lower-than-expected quarterly earnings of some of the companies and the increasing interest rates prompted investors to book profit on stocks that were trading above the floor price.
More than 50 listed companies published their quarterly earnings for the April-June quarter during the week while the majority of them posted lower profits.

The investors' confidence remained shaky in the absence of a major market trigger, leading them to hold more cash positions rather than take long-term stands in equities, said a stockbroker.
However, he said some investors continued their chase on general insurance stocks in anticipation of short-term gains, resulting in seven out of the top ten weekly gainers being general insurers.
The general insurance sector posted a 2.80 per cent return, capturing 21 per cent of the week's total turnover.
Of the five trading days this week, the first three sessions suffered losses while the last two posted marginal gains.
DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, went down by 26.10 points to settle the week at 6,339.51, after gaining 31 points in the past two weeks.
The DS30 Index, which comprises blue-chip companies, saw a sharp fall of 36.92 points to 2160 during the week as some large-cap companies dropped out from the DS30 index after a semi-annual revision.
The DSES index, which represents Shariah-based companies, also slumped 9.22 points to nearly 1,374.
The investors preferred to realise their short-term gains and hold onto cash positions following the ongoing corporate earnings declaration, said EBL Securities.
The market faced selling pressure in the first three sessions of the week, primarily due to price corrections of particular large-cap and trendy stocks amid a lack of clear direction, said the stockbroker.
However, the market logged a marginal recovery in the last two sessions as recent corrections created bargain-hunting opportunities for investors chasing short-term gains, it added.
Turnover, a crucial market indicator, also tumbled to Tk 32.57 billion in total, down from Tk 47.35 billion in the week before.
The average daily turnover stood at Tk 6.51 billion in the outgoing week, a 31 per cent decrease compared to Tk 9.47 billion in the previous week.
Md Sajedul Islam, senior vice president of DSE Brokers Association of Bangladesh, said that some companies' quarterly earnings might have failed to meet investors' expectations, leading them to book profits.
Lower-than-expected quarterly earnings, coupled with the fact that some multinational firms did not declare any interim dividends this year, along with the heating up of the political atmosphere, might be the factors behind the market fall, according to Mr Islam.
Most of the traded stocks saw price erosion, as out of 388 issues traded, 136 closed lower, 50 higher and 203 issues remained unchanged during the week on the DSE trading floor.
Small-cap Fu-Wang Food kept its dominance in the weekly turnover charts for the fourth straight week with shares worth Tk 1.63 billion changing hands, followed by Sea Pearl Beach Resorts (Tk 1.27 billion), Khan Brothers (Tk 936 million), Gemini Sea Food (Tk 871 million) and Rupali Life Insurance (Tk 838 million).
Crystal Insurance was the week's top gainer, registering an increase of 22.76 per cent following the news that the company is going to invest Tk 125 million in the upcoming digital bank.
Rupali Life Insurance continued to suffer losses and lost 19.46 per cent further during the week.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended lower, with the CSE All Share Price Index (CASPI) losing 62 points to settle at 18,717 and the Selective Categories Index (CSCX) shedding 39 points to close at 11,188.
Of the issues traded, 100 declined, 53 advanced and 136 issues remained unchanged on the CSE.
The port city's bourse traded 15.72 million shares and mutual fund units with a turnover value worth Tk 494 million.
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