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Gamblers at it again. Their victim this time: National Tubes

Ahsan Habib
Word on the street was that National Tubes has been commissioned to establish pipe lines all over Bangladesh - a coup for any pipe manufacturer.
But the problem is, the state-run pipe manufacturer has been in the losses since fiscal 2016-17 and its sales and production have been steadily declining since fiscal 2013-14.
So the off-the-record news going around of it getting a work order of this magnitude is bound to raise the alarm.
But it didn't for many unknowing retail investors, who rushed to pick up stocks of National Tubes — sending its price soaring at a time when the overall market was sinking.
Between August 20 and September 17, when the DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, slid 5.88 percent, the pipe manufacturer's stock rose 52 percent to Tk 174.4 - and on most days there was no seller.
Another rumour floating around then was that the National Board of Revenue has refunded about Tk 19 crore that National Tubes had paid as advanced income tax. The refunded sum would be used to raise production capacity.
None of the two rumours are true, said National Tubes through the DSE website yesterday. And yet its stock rose 9.25 percent to Tk 175.90 at the close of trade.
"It is not possible to return to profit overnight, so we are wondering what led the stock to skyrocket," Sa. M. Ziaul Huq, head of commercial department of National Tubes, told The Daily Star.
The company is trying its level best to change its fate and has even resorted to going door-to-door for orders, he added.
What actually transpired was a concerted play by a band of rogue players to make a quick buck using yet another company with a low paid-up capital.
The paid-up capital of National Tubes is Tk 31.65 crore. The government owns 51 percent of the stakes and institutional investors 20.4 percent.
Such plays are becoming all too common and yet the stock market regulator is not taking any decisive action to nip them in the bud.
"This company along with a few others is under our observation," said Saifur Rahman, spokesperson of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission.
There are other companies whose stocks are rising for no reason.
"We will see if there is any foul play and hand out punishment accordingly," he added.