Stocks posted a marginal gain in the outgoing week, with the key index of the major bourse hitting a new high, as bargain hunters continued to put fresh bets on shares despite virus worries.
The week featured five trading days against the last week's only two sessions. Of them, three sessions closed higher while two faced marginal correction.
Week-on-week, DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up by 20.20 points or 0.31 per cent to settle the week at 6,425, highest since its inception in 2013.
The DSEX was introduced more than eight years back on January 27, 2013, designed by Standard and Poor's (S&P) based on the free-float method, replacing the then key index - DGEN. However, the all-time high DGEN was 8,918 recorded on December 5, 2010, when the market saw a bull run before a crash.
Although the DSEX gained slightly during the week, it was enough the index to reach a new high. DSEX added 373 points in the six consecutive weeks.
Two other indices also edged higher with the DS30 index, comprising blue chips, advanced 6.0 points to finish at 2,328 and the DSE Shariah Index rose 14 points to close at 1,401.
The week's total turnover on the DSE stood at Tk 71.28 billion against Tk 30.57 billion in the week before as last week saw usual five trading days against previous week's only two.
The daily turnover averaged out at Tk 14.25 billion on the prime bourse, which was 6.75 per cent lower than the previous week's average of Tk 15.28 billion.
Market experts said the core index holds its firm position at above 6,000 points marks as buying support added strength to the equity indices despite worries over virus-infused shock to the country's economy.
The institutional investors preferred buying stocks as they hope the index will rise further as money flow in the banking sector may increase after the monetary policy statement, said a merchant banker.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also edged higher with the CSE All Share Price Index - CASPI -gaining 66 points to settle at 18,635 and the Selective Categories Index - CSCX rising 43 points to close at 11,190.
Of the issues traded, 166 declined, 146 advanced and 27 remained unchanged on the CSE trading floor.
The port city's bourse traded 115.12 million shares and mutual fund units with turnover value of Tk 2.60 billion.
babulfexpress@gmail.com