Stocks take a breather after bumpy ride

Stocks extended the gaining streak for the third straight session Thursday amid high volatility as some of the investors booked profit from the recent price surge.
The market swung between gains and losses before closing marginally higher although prices of most the traded shares closed in the red.
At the end of the session, DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up by 12.55 points or 0.19 per cent to settle at 6,560. DSEX gained 129 points in the past three trading days.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, dropped to Tk 18.78 billion on the premier bourse, 15 per cent down from the previous day's tally of Tk 22.01 billion.
Market insiders said the market witnessed volatility as investors were active on both sides of the trading fence while selective large-cap stocks helped the index close in the green.
"Stocks managed to stay afloat, fueled by the price appreciation of some large-cap stocks despite volatility throughout the session," said EBL Securities, in its regular market analysis.
The investors' buying appetite was concentrated on selective stocks being induced by positive expectations from the upcoming earnings declarations, said the stockbroker.
Most of the scrips witnessed corrections due to profit-booking by a segment of investors, it said.
Five large-cap stocks such as Beximco, LafargeHolcim, Orion Pharma, Beacon Pharma and Beximco Pharma jointly contributed 20 points rise of the DSEX, according to stocknow.com, a market data analyst.
The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, also rose 22.59 points to finish at 2,376. However, the DSE Shariah Index (DSES) saw a fractional loss of 0.97 points to close at 1,441.
The pharmaceuticals sector kept its dominance in the turnover chart, grabbing 23 per cent of the day's total turnover, followed by miscellaneous (20 per cent) and textile (11 per cent).
Most of the large-cap sectors posted negative performance except pharmaceutical which gained 0.65 per cent.
Fuel & power sector experienced the highest loss of 0.74 per cent, followed by engineering (0.51 per cent), food (0.36 per cent), banking (0.35 per cent), financial institutions (0.18 per cent) and telecoms (0.02 per cent).
Losers took a strong lead over the gainers, as out of 379 issues traded, 188 closed lower, 72 higher and 119 others remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Beximco became the most-traded stock with shares worth Tk 2.64 billion changing hands, followed by Orion Pharma (Tk 1.87 billion), LafargeHolcim (Tk 1.19 billion), JMI Hospital Requisite Manufacturing (Tk 518 million) and Nahee Aluminum Composite Panel (Tk 480 million).
Orion infusion was the day's top gainer, soaring 8.72 per cent while Bashundhara Paper Mills was the worst loser, shedding 9.19 per cent.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also edged higher with the CSE All Share Price Index (CASPI) rising 80 points to settle at 19,276 and its Selective Categories Index (CSCX) gaining 48 points to close at 11,554.
Of the issues traded, 142 declined, 64 advanced and 73 issues remained unchanged.
The port-city bourse traded 6.82 million shares and mutual fund units with a turnover value of Tk 279 million.

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