Stocks stayed flat on Tuesday while turnover dipped below Tk 1.0 billion-mark once again as investors were reluctant to make fresh investment amid ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
DSEX, the key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, went up by 6.26 points or 0.15 per cent to close at 3,962.
Investors are also cautiously monitoring and waiting for the upcoming budget announcements before making any further investment decisions, said a stockbroker.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal is set to unveil the national budget for the fiscal year (FY) 2020-2021 tomorrow (Thursday).
Turnover slumped to Tk 677 million, which was 36 per cent lower than the previous day, as the investors were not showing any enthusiasm for buying of shares at the current price level due to the raging epidemic.
Of the issues traded, 238 remained unchanged while only 25 issues advanced and 16 declined on the DSE trading floor.
Two other indices also edged up. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, advanced 4.24 points to finish at 1,329 and the DSE Shariah Index gained 0.35 points to close at 917.
According to International Leasing Securities, the floor price mechanism barred the investors from selling of shares while some investors were buying pharma stocks due to the worsening of Covid-19 situation.
Accordingly, the pharma sector gained 0.30 per cent. The sector also grabbed 40 per cent of the day's total turnover.
A total number of 10,546 trades were executed in the day's trading session with trading volume of 25.04 million shares and mutual fund units.
The market-cap of the DSE also inched up to Tk 3,102 billion, from Tk 3,100 billion in the previous session.
Beximco Pharma topped the turnover chart with shares worth Tk 52 million changing hands, followed by Square Pharma, Indo-Bangla Pharma, ACI and Silva Pharma.
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