Star Business Report

Stocks bounced back yesterday to go past 5,500-point mark after two weeks as investors are increasingly showing interest in the market after a recent fall made many shares lucrative.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), was up 81.4 points, or 1.50 per cent, to close the day at 5,508.26.

“Investors’ participation rose. This is a positive development for the market,” said Mohammad Moniruzzaman, managing director of IDLC Investments.

The trading was diversified too, he said.

Around 32 per cent turnover of the DSE had been concentrated in five to six companies in the last couple of weeks. They were Beximco Ltd, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, BATBC, LankaBangla Finance, and Robi Axiata, DSE data showed.

Investors bought various stocks, indicating their renewed hope in the market, he added.

For the last few days, junk stocks have been advancing as many investors think these shares would perform better in the future thanks to regulatory steps, said a stock broker.

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission changed the board of directors of five low-performing companies in a bid to improve their performance. The regulator may take similar steps for some other companies.

Investors believe the companies that saw the restructure of the board may bounce back, so they are buying the stocks of these companies, the broker said.

But, they should be rational because the rebound of the companies that had incurred losses years after years would not be easy, he added.

Turnover, an important indicator of the market, rose 34.9 per cent, to Tk 833 crore on the DSE.

On the DSE, 233 stocks rose, 42 declined and 84 remained unchanged.

Peninsula Chittagong topped the gainers’ list as it rose 10 per cent, followed by Emerald Oil, LankaBangla Finance, eGeneration, and Anwar Galvanizing.