Stocks down amid lower turnover

The first trading day of this fiscal year closed lower Wednesday as investors continued to book short-term profit on selected stocks amid cautious transactions. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) -- ended at 4,466.62 points, shedding 13.90 points or 0.31 per cent from previous session. The other two indices also ended in negative. The DS30, comprising blue chips lost 7.44 points or 0.45 per cent to close at 1,637.31 points. The DSE Shariah Index (DSES) went down by 10.26 points or 1.00 per cent to close at 1,009.07 points. The total turnover on DSE came down to Tk 2.48 billion, registering a decline of 36 per cent from previous session’s value of Tk 3.87 billion. Out of 290 issues traded, 168 declined, 91 advanced and 31 remained unchanged on the DSE floor. Beximco Limited was the most traded stocks with shares worth Tk 313.52 million changing hands followed by GP, United Airways, Lafarge Surma Cement and Square Pharma. Al-Haj Textile was the day’s highest gainer, posting a rise of 9.99 per cent while Meghna Life Insurance was the day’s worst loser, slumping by 15.44 per cent.in the port city bourse, Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) closed mixed with its Selective Categories Index – CSCX – lost 2.15 points to close at 8,504.84 points. Losers beat gainers 129 to 51, with 21 issues remaining unchanged at the port city bourse that traded 7.75 million shares and mutual fund units, turnover value of Tk 203.80 million.