DSEX edges down as sell-off continues for second session

Stocks on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) continued their decline for a second straight session today (18 October) amid persistent selling pressure, cautious investor sentiment, and ongoing corporate earnings and dividend disclosures.

The benchmark DSEX index fell 10 points to 5,422, while the blue-chip DS30 index shed 4 points to 2,085.

Turnover stood at Tk365 crore amid subdued trading. Of the issues traded, 217 declined, 102 advanced and 67 remained unchanged.

EBL Securities said in its daily market review that investors largely stayed on the sidelines amid ongoing earnings and dividend announcements, with uncertainty over the market’s near-term direction weighing on confidence. Profit-booking following recent bargain hunting triggered early selling, while intermittent buying support failed to reverse the trend.

A DSE official, speaking on condition of anonymity, attributed the low turnover partly to technical arrangements to test the exchange’s disaster recovery server. Weak network connectivity also dampened trading activity, although the official said brokers had been notified in advance.

Textiles accounted for the largest share of turnover at 23%, followed by General Insurance at 14.4% and Pharmaceuticals at 10.3%.

Sectoral performance was mixed, with Jute gaining 1.8%, Services 0.7% and non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) 0.5%. Mutual Funds led the losers, falling 1.2%, followed by IT at 0.8% and Ceramics at 0.7%.

Sonali Aansh, IPDC Finance, Paramount Textile, Asiatic Laboratories and Sonargaon Textile were among the most-traded stocks.

RSRM Steel topped the gainers, rising 9.52%, while Sharp Industries led the losers, shedding 5.22%.