The stock market managed to stay positive this week, extending the gaining streak for the fourth straight week even as cautious investors opted to book profit on quick-gaining stocks.
As many stocks saw price appreciation by 10 to 15 per cent in the past few trading days, smart investors realised their gains, slowing down the market recovery, according to market insiders.
This week, the benchmark equity index of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) surged 97 points in the first three days only to give up almost 88 points in the last two days.
The benchmark DSEX index finally ended the week only 9 points or 0.17 per cent higher at 5,507.
"Stocks failed to hold onto the revival spirit despite showing buy dominance in the first three sessions of the week, as the market pulse turned back to the correction mode in the later part of the week," commented EBL Securities.
Buyers and sellers remained active as opportunistic investors sought to take positions in particular shares, while the risk-averse preferred to realize their quick gains, it added.
Square Pharma, Khan Brothers PP Woven Bag Industries, BAT Bangladesh, and National Bank experienced a surge in buying activity, adding more than 18 points to the weekly index.
However, the gains were eroded by decline in the prices of Beximco Pharma, Renata, Beacon Pharma, Unilever Consumer Care, and Linde Bangladesh.
The recent price appreciation of some stocks prompted a section of investors to realize their gains, particularly in the later part of the week, Md. Shakil Rizvi, managing director of Shakil Rizvi Stock Ltd, said on Thursday.
Moreover, a section of investors sold their holdings to free some funds in preparation for purchasing Techno Drug shares set to debut on the market on Sunday, he added.
He, however, expressed optimism, saying that when investors make profit, they gain confidence to reinvest.
Although the benchmark index eked out a gain, two other indices ended in the red. The blue-chip DS30 index, a group of 30 prominent companies, dropped almost 9 points to 1,942 while the DSES index, which represents Shariah-based companies, lost more than 1 point to close at 1,207.
Some fresh funds also entered the market as investors received refunds from the latest IPO subscription. Investors who applied for Techno Drug's IPO shares got back the unused funds during the week and put fresh bets on lucrative stocks.
Thus, investor participation in the market also rebounded, with a single-day market turnover crossing the Tk 10 billion-mark after two months on Tuesday.
The total turnover, which indicates the volume of shares traded, climbed to 44.43 billion this week, up from Tk 24.63 billion in the week before.
Subsequently, the daily average turnover jumped 44 per cent to Tk 8.89 billion, from Tk 6.16 billion in the previous week.
The pharmaceutical sector kept its dominance on the turnover chart, accounting for 16.5 per cent of the week's total turnover, followed by textile (11.2 per cent) and food (11 per cent).
Major sectors showed mixed performance. Engineering sector saw the highest loss of 4.83 per cent, followed by non-bank financial institutions with 1.6 per cent, telecom 1.13 per cent, food 0.63 per cent, pharma 0.50 per cent, and power 0.40 per cent.
On the other hand, general insurance booked the highest gain of 2.79 per cent, followed by mutual funds with 2.36 per cent, and banking 1.32 per cent.
A majority of the stocks saw price appreciation, as out of the 396 issues traded, 220 advanced, 154 ended lower and 22 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor.
Sea Pearl Beach Resorts became the most-traded stocks with shares worth Tk 1.78 billion changing hands, closely followed by Beach Hatchery, Orion Pharma, Salvo Chemicals and Lovello Ice-Cream.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also closed higher with its All Share Price Index (CASPI) rising 294 points to 15,757 and the Selective Categories Index (CSCX) gaining 170 points to 9,485.
The port city bourse traded 33.49 million shares and mutual fund units, with a turnover value of Tk 2.62 billion.
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