Stocks kept gaining for the eighth day on Wednesday with turnover hitting three-month high as buoyant investors continued to chase lucrative issues.
Market operators said investors had gained confidence to some extent as some of the leading companies showed signs of corporate earnings recovery in the latest quarter amid the easing of the recent macroeconomic adversities.
For example, Premier Cement, Bangladesh Steel Re-rolling Mills, Doreen Power, Singer Bangladesh and Walton, which saw low profits or suffered losses in the second quarter, posted higher profits in the third quarter of FY23.
The recent margin loan relaxation by the securities regulator promoted some investors to pour fresh funds into selective stocks.
As a result, the market carried on its upward trend and the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSEX) recovered 70 points in the past eight days, gaining 2.84 points further to settle at 6,266 on Wednesday.
Top five index movers were Olympic Industries, Unique Hotel & Resorts, Heidelberg Cement, Eastern Bank, and Eastern Housing, jointly accounting for more than 8 points rise.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, stood at Tk 7.65 billion on the country's premier bourse, climbing further by 7.30 per cent. It was the highest turnover since January 18 this year.
"Stocks managed to extend their gaining streak amid profit booking pressures riding on continuous buy dominance on lucrative issues with earnings recovery potential," said EBL Securities.
The market saw some volatility as the recent price appreciation of selective stocks has enticed cautious investors to secure their short-term gains, according to the stockbroker.
According to International Leasing Securities, investors sustained their buying appetite on the selective stocks despite some profit booking sale pressures.
The market extended rally as investors are putting fresh bets on selective stocks in anticipation of short-term gains, said Md Sajedul Islam, senior-vice president of DSE Brokers Association.
However, he said the market movement was mostly on a handful of stocks and large-cap stocks have remained stuck at floor prices for the last few months, which is a major barrier for sustainable market recovery.
Most of the stocks stayed unmoved due to limited liquidation opportunities. Of the issues traded, 64 advanced, 72 declined and 212 remained unchanged.
The small-cap stocks continued to dominate the gainers chart with Apex Foods being the top gainer, soaring 8.74 per cent, followed by Aftab Automobiles, Sonali Aansh, Heidelberg Industries and Bangladesh Monospool Paper Manufacturing Company.
Unique Hotel & Resorts became the turnover leader, with shares of Tk 612 million changing hands, followed by Eastern Housing, Olympic Industries, Aamra Networks and Apex Footwear.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also edged higher with the CSE All Share Price Index - CASPI -rising 11 points to settle at 18,452 and the Selective Categories Index - CSCX gaining 5 points to close at 11,056.
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