Stocks edge up as GP claws back

Stocks posted modest gain for the second straight session Wednesday as investors showed their buying appetite on sector specific issues amid cautious trading.
Market analysts said the market extended the gaining spell as some investors continued their buying appetite on sector-specific shares, particularly ion telecom and power sector shares.
Grameenphone's share price rose 1.63 per cent to close at Tk 385.70 on Wednesday, after facing sharp correction in few days.
The recent regulatory conditions imposed on GP as an SMP operator didn't appear to be any major impediment for the company's business growth as anticipated earlier that resulted into investors' revival of investor attraction, said EBL Securities.
Meanwhile, Grameenphone is pressing the regulator for logical SMP directives that build greater competition in the market rather than imposing directives that penalize efficient operations and timely investments and raise barriers against better customer services.
Suggesting that existing laws and regulations adequately focus on fair competition, Grameenphone Head of Regulatory Affairs, Hossain Sadat, who was present at an event, questioned the need for separate SMP regulations and directives to create a competitive environment.
Sadat raised a concern that the remedies proposed by the regulator as well as the process leading up to the remedies are unprecedented in other SMP regimes; particularly when there is no evidence of abuse of dominant position or anti-competitive behavior by the identified entity. He opined that the initial SMP directives were not designed to bolster competition rather to transfer value from one operator to another. "SMP directives should not be used to restrict the ability for entities to grow, innovate and invest," he stressed.
"Labeling an entity an SMP and imposing restrictive and asymmetrical directives without clear rationale or evidence of abuse due to dominance or joint dominance in the market runs counter to principles of fair competition and is ultimately detrimental to create value for customers," he said.
The directives were issued by the regulator can be deemed to be anti-competitive where it should create an environment in the market where the operators can flourish on their own merit.
DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), settled at 5,745, advancing 9.91 points or 0.17 per cent over the previous day.
Two other indices also edged higher. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, advanced 7.17 points to finish at 2002 and the DSES (Shariah) index gained 5.35 points to settle at 1,312.
According to International Leasing Securities, said, the active presence of the bargain hunters, particularly on telecom, power and pharma sectors stocks helped the index to close in green.
Turnover stood at Tk 6.84 billion on the country's premier bourse, rising 12 per cent over previous day's mark of Tk 6.12 billion.
A total number of 142,682 trades were executed in the day's trading session with trading volume of 120.49 million shares and mutual fund units.
The market-cap of the DSE increased to Tk 4,156 billion, from Tk 4,145 billion in the previous day.
Telecommunication posted the highest gain of 1.46 per cent, followed by power with 1.21 per cent, pharmaceuticals 0.14 per cent and engineering 0.07 per cent.

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