Stocks rebounded this week from a three-year low in the previous week, boosted by higher-than-expected earnings reports that lifted the investor sentiment in this earnings season.
The large-cap stocks led this week's rebound as investors hope that the earnings will renew the stock's uptrend.
Besides, regulatory efforts such as narrowing the scope of individual stocks' decline to maximum 3 per cent a day from 10 per cent and a tough move to stop the spread of rumours helped prevent the market fall, market experts said.
Three people were arrested last week for circulating disinformation through social media platforms to influence or manipulate stock prices after the securities regulator had filed a case.
Buoyed by the upbeat earnings reports, opportunistic investors took positions in selective stocks, particularly large-cap ones, which seemed lucrative after major price corrections.
Substantial price surge of large-cap stocks pushed the benchmark DSEX index more than 97 points or 1.76 per cent higher to 5,615, snapping a two-week losing streak.
The investors renewed their buying appetite for selective large-cap stocks deemed too lucrative for investment after major corrections, said Akramul Alam, head of research at Royal Capital.
Institutional buying support has added strength to the equity indices, he added.
Square Pharma, National Bank, Brac Bank, Orion Pharma, LafargeHolcim and Kohinoor Chemicals contributed largely to the weekly market jump as they jointly accounted for one-third of index rise this week.
Square Pharma's stock price soared 5 per cent after the largest drug maker reported a 15 per cent year-on-year jump in profit to Tk 4.41 billion in January-March quarter this year.
Moreover, reappointment of the securities regulator chairman for another four-year term also boosted the investor confidence, said Mr Alam.
Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul Islam has been reappointed chairman of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) for another four-year term, during the week.
"Stocks clutched the prolonged free-fall as opportunistic investors sought short-term gain opportunities in certain stocks based on the recent earnings disclosures following the substantial corrections," said EBL Securities, in its weekly market analysis.
However, overall market sentiment is yet to revive across the trading floor.
The blue chip index DS30, a group of 30 prominent companies, advanced 33 points to 2007 while the DSES Index, which represents Shariah-based companies, gained 15 points to 1,232.
Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, also rose to Tk 28.23 billion this week as against Tk 27.58 billion last week, even as this week saw four trading days instead of the previous week's five.
Accordingly, the average daily turnover stood at Tk 7.05 billion, which was 27 per cent higher than the previous week's tally of Tk 5.53 billion.
Investors were mostly active in the pharmaceutical sector, which accounted for 24 per cent of the week's total turnover, followed by the textile sector (14 per cent) and food sector (12 per cent).
Majority of traded stocks saw price appreciation as out of the issues traded, 228 advanced, 133 declined and 34 remained unchanged during the week.
Most of the sectors posted gains with the travel & leisure sector saw the highest gain of 7 per cent, followed by life insurance, textile, cement, pharma, banking, and telecom.
Malek Spinning Mills dominated the turnover chart, with shares worth Tk 1.38 billion changing hands, followed by Asiatic Laboratories, Orion Infusions, Lovello Ice-cream and IT Consultants.
JMI Syringes & Medical Devices was the week's top gainer, posting a 24 per cent gain while Rupali Bank was the worst loser, shedding 16.6 per cent.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange also rebounded, with its All Shares Price Index (CASPI) rising 236 points to 16,051 and the Selective Categories Index (CSCX) gaining 143 points to 9,664.
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