Stocks pass a strong week

Stocks gained 4.57 percent last week, the highest in the last five weeks, as investors took a break from political tension and used low prices as a buying opportunity.
The benchmark General Index, DGEN, the yardstick of Dhaka Stock Exchange, finished the week at 4,543.45 points, after gaining 198.43 points.
Tension eased after the ruling alliance and the main opposition party and its allies staged political rallies peacefully in a space of three days, market analysts said.
The National Board of Revenue's plan to provide 10 percent tax rebate on investment of listed securities also boosted investor confidence, they said.
Daily average turnover stood at Tk 255 crore, up 11.88 percent from the previous week.
A total of 4.04 lakh daily average trades were executed, with 5.4 crore shares and mutual fund units changing hands in the last week on the Dhaka bourse.
Of the 269 issues that traded during the week, 239 advanced, 24 declined and six remained unchanged. All sectors, except for food and allied, closed higher in the week.
The food and allied sector lost 4.04 percent while BATBC lost 8.22 percent alone following its price adjustment after a record date Thursday.
Among the major sectors, fuel and power posted the largest gain of 7.31 percent, followed by telecoms that gained 6.01 percent, non-bank financial institutions 5.20 percent, pharmaceuticals 4.22 percent and banks 3.49 percent.
Beximco topped the turnover table with 99.33 lakh shares worth Tk 100.83 crore changed hands.
Samorita Hospital was the biggest gainer of the week as it posted a 25.80 percent rise, while RN Spinning Mills was the worst loser, slumping by 19.23 percent.