Stocks end higher for 2nd straight day

Stocks edged higher for the second running sessions Monday with turnover crossing Tk 4.0 billion-mark further as quality stocks caught investors' buying interest.
Brokers said extension of time limit for adjusting single borrower exposure limit by the commercial banks' subsidiary brokerage houses and merchant banks also created a breathing space for the market.
Bangladesh Bank on Sunday extended time by one more year for adjusting single borrower exposure limit and relaxed the loan provisioning rules on mutual fund (MF) units further, considering the overall market situation.
The market opened higher which sustained throughout the session amid marginal volatility. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up by 29.76 points or 0.66 per cent to finish at 4,531.98.
The two other indices also edged higher. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, gained 13.60 points or 0.78 per cent to close at 1,752.01. The DSE Shariah Index (DSES), advanced 7.85 points or 0.71 per cent to end at 1,111.65.
Turnover, the crucial indicator of the market, crossed Tk 4.0 billion-mark again and amounted to Tk 4.28 billion, which was 18.3 per cent higher than the previous day's Tk 3.62 billion.
The investors' attention was mostly focused on pharma, engineering and power - the sectors that accounted for 25 per cent, 15 per cent and 11 per cent of the day's total turnover.  
"Trades, centering on tax rebate motivation persisted, pulling indices up from the beginning of the session," said IDLC Investments, a merchant bank, in an analysis.
Though, sell pressure emerged in the middle of the session, forcing it down, buyers prevailed in the end of the session grossing a total 29.8 points to DSEX, said the merchant bank.
LankaBangla Securities, a stockbroker, said, "Index edged up with modest strength, partly offsetting the sharp pullback seen in previous week".
"Buying interest spurred in market as quality stocks caught investors' eyes," said the stockbroker.
"Heavy buying of shares in issues from different sectors sustained during the whole session amid slight volatility," said International Leasing Securities, a stockbroker, in an analysis.
"Steady macro-economic outlook, favorable political scenario and policy level support might be helping the investors to regain confidence," said the stockbroker.
Price surge in the financial institutions, cement and fuel and power sectors mostly helped the indices to upswing, it said.
All large-cap sectors posted positive return. NBFIs appreciated the most in the session with 3.69 per cent gain, followed by cement which posted 1.76 per cent gain.
The port city bourse Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended higher with its Selective Categories Index - CSCX - gained 61 points to close at 8,477 points.
Gainers beat losers 151 to 61, with 40 issues remaining unchanged at the port city bourse that traded 9.0 million shares and mutual fund units, turnover of Tk 429 million.
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