Turnover dips 18.67pc

Stocks ended flat Wednesday amid volatile trading with turnover dropped further as investors continued to book profit on large cap stocks.

The prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) --- DSEX --- went up slightly by 1.95 points or 0.04 per cent to close the session at 4,811.49 points from previous session.

The DSE Shariah Index (DSES) gained 2.80 points or 0.28 per cent to 982.52 points. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips also managed to close positive with 0.06 points gain to 1,663.75 points.

The total turnover on DSE came down to Tk 6.20 billion, registering 18.67 per cent decline over the previous session's turnover value of Tk 7.71 billion.

"Market rebounded after a small correction it took on Tuesday, but the trading pattern remained mixed," said LankaBangla Securities, a leading stock broker in its daily market analysis.

In the middle of trading session, sellers rushed to book profit on large cap stocks, however buyers exerted strong force in last hour reverting the index to green, said the stock broker.

Finance division has expressed its intension to minimize the government interest payment through borrowing less from long term financing source and more from mid-term sources. And they suggested focusing more on external debt which is cheap, the stock broker said.

"It may unfold a downward pressure on internal interest rates and bring down the yield rate. High liquidity in the banking system is also indicating downward moving interest rate," said the stock broker.

"This would benefit businesses those are experiencing higher interest expense and the equity market as investors search for higher yield," the stock broker added.

"Sentiment was somewhat mixed over sustainability of DSEX at present level of 4,800 points," said IDLC Investments.

"Hesitant investors went for securing some profits, while optimistic segment kept their strong presence, particularly in the later part of the session," said the merchant bank.

Meanwhile, cautious participation over mixed sentiment resulted in 18.67 per cent decline in turnover. After previous day's strong presence, activities dropped in banks and fuel & power.

The losers took a modest lead over the gainers as out of 293 issues traded, 153 decline, 110 gained and 30 issues closed unchanged on the DSE floor.