Stocks edge up for second day

Stocks edged higher for the second running session Tuesday with increased participation from investors as investors continued their buying appetite on some large-cap issues.
Market insiders said the government decision to cut yield rates of savings instruments coupled with lucrative price level of many fundamental stocks, continued to prompt investors to take fresh position anticipating short-term rally.
The market started with an upbeat note and the key index of the major bourse adding nearly 26 points within first 40 minutes of trading, but rest of the session eroded most of the early gains, finally closed 9.46 points higher.
DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), finished at 5394.82 points, advancing 9.46 points or 0.17 per cent over the previous session.
"Index started with a moderate upward movement and held its position for the first half of the trading session. From the second half of the session, index slightly came down but yet closed green," said LankaBangla Securities, a stockbroker
The two other indices also edged higher. The DS30 index, comprising blue-chips, advanced 3.76 points or 0.18 per cent to settle at 1997.54. The DSE Shariah Index (DSES) gained 4.04 points or 0.32 per cent to close at 1258.48.
Turnover, the crucial indicator of the market, also rose to Tk 6.13 billion, which was 9.46 per cent higher than the previous day's Tk 5.60 billion.
Fuel and power enjoyed strong investors' interest, being the most active sector. Power sector captured 19 per cent of the day's total turnover value, followed by textile 15 per cent and engineering 14 per cent.
International Leasing Securities, a stockbroker, said, "The investors went for buying of shares from the beginning of the session, which sustained till the end of the session amid choppy trading".
"Both the optimist and shaky investors demonstrated their active presence during the session. Investors' concentration on food, bank, textile and engineering sectors stock surged the prime index," said the stockbroker.
AT Capital Partners, an asset management company, said, "The market extended the winning session for the second consecutive days, marginally paring twelve-day long discrete correction".
Large-cap sectors showed mostly positive performance. Food and allied posted the highest gain of 1.40 per cent, followed by engineering 0.52 per cent, fuel and power 0.41 per cent, banks 0.36 per cent and pharmaceuticals 0.10 per cent.
The port city bourse, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), also edged higher with its Selective Categories Index - CSCX - advancing 29.26 points to settle at 10,128.
Gainers beat losers as 112 issues closed higher, 88 closed lower and 31 remained unchanged on the CSE trading floor.
The CSE turnover jumped 809 per cent to Tk 3.11 billion as the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), one of the corporate directors of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL), sold out nearly 87 million shares of IBBL as per declared on the day through CSE.
The port city bourse traded 99.24 million shares and mutual fund units on the day.
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