Turnover slipped to seven-month low as stocks tumble
Shares on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) declined for the fifth consecutive day yesterday and turnover dropped to a seven-month low due to thin investor participation as the key index continued its downward spiral.
The DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka bourse, gave up 65 points, or 0.95 per cent, to end the week at 6,852.
Turnover fell to Tk 849 crore, down 24 per cent from the previous day's Tk 1,129 crore. This was the lowest daily turnover since April 27, when it stood at Tk 824 crore, DSE data showed.
"Besides, poor performance in the banking sector is taking a serious toll on the index," an analyst said.
Bank stocks are on a falling trend as many listed lenders are suffering from a provision shortfall in the face of increasing bad loans.
"Bank stocks witnessed the highest drop in value among all major sectors, falling by 1.54 per cent on average," LankaBangla Securities said in its daily market review.
Up until September, non-performing loans stood at Tk 101,150 crore, up 14 per cent from nine months earlier and 7.1 per cent year-on-year, Bangladesh Bank data showed.
This was the first time in 21 months that the total amount of default loans had crossed the Tk 1 lakh crore mark.
Meanwhile, the provision base of banks deteriorated in the third quarter of 2021 because of a rise in bad debt.
The shortfall widened to Tk 6,204 crore in September, up 50 folds in contrast to Tk 123 crore in December last year, as per the data from the Bangladesh Bank.
Sena Kalyan Insurance topped the gainers' list, rising 9.94 per cent, followed by Acme Pesticides, Shurwid Industries, and Anwar Galvanizing.
Stocks of Beximco Ltd traded the most, worth Tk 117 crore, followed by One Bank, Paramount Textiles, IFIC Bank, and Genex Infosys. LR Global Mutual Fund One shed the most, falling 9.87 per cent, followed by Shyampur Sugar Mills, National Tea, KDS Accessories, and The Peninsula Chittagong.
At the DSE, 89 stocks advanced, 241 declined, and 32 remained unchanged.
The Chattogram Stock Exchange shared a similar fate yesterday with the CASPI, the main index of the port city bourse, giving up 211 points, or 1.04 per cent, to close at 20,058. Among 260 traded stocks, 55 advanced, 182 declined, and 23 remained unchanged.
The premier bourse remained in the red last week as investors were in a selling mood following days of correction as they feared that the benchmark index may fall further, according to an analysis of International Leasing Securities Ltd.
The DSEX, the DSES, and the DS30 lost 239.7 points, 37.9 points, and 92.1 points respectively.
The travel and leisure sector rose 3.5 per cent and the service and real estate gained 2.3 per cent. Tannery fell 7.5 per cent, life insurance declined 7.5 per cent, and jute slipped 5.1 per cent.