STAR BUSINESS REPORT

Share markets in Bangladesh have continued to rise, buoyed by the ongoing movement for change, as large investors made fresh bets on blue-chip stocks yesterday, the second day of trade since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government on July 5.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), soared for the second consecutive day by 192.37 points, or 3.54 percent, from that on the previous day and closed at 5,618.79.

Similarly, the DSES index for the Shariah-based companies, increased 42.53 points, or 3.61 percent, to 1,219.14.

Meanwhile, the DS30 index, which comprises blue-chip firms, surged 87.43 points, or 4.52 percent, to 2,022.17.

Stockbrokers are saying that institutional investors were buying stocks, for which the index was rising. They are hopeful of good governance in the market once a new government comes to office, they said.

Blue chip firms such as Square Pharmaceuticals, BAT Bangladesh, BRAC Bank, Islami Bank Bangladesh, Grameenphone, LafargeHolcim Bangladesh, Renata, City Bank, Olympic Industries and Robi Axiata were among those that largely attracted investors.

The first five entities posted a double-digit growth in share prices.

Square Pharmaceuticals and BAT Bangladesh contributed 29.27 percent and 19.69 percent respectively to the day’s total market turnover, according to LankaBangla Finance Portal.

A top official of a leading stock brokerage firm said it had conducted an analysis on the effect of a political crisis on the capital market last year where it found that a regime change had a minimum upside of 1,000 points.

He expects many more fundamental changes to come about in the future through increased market monitoring and a drop in market manipulation.

As a result, good stocks will regain a momentum of gains while junk stocks will stop making it to the top gainers’ list, which has happened for most of the days in the last couple of years, he added.

Turnover, which indicates the total value of shares changing hands on the trading floor of the country’s premier bourse, increased 3.41 percent to Tk 776 crore, the highest in about one month.

Of the issues that changed hands on the DSE, 266 advanced, 114 declined and 16 did not witness any price fluctuation.

Non-bank financial institutions, telecom, and food and allied are the top three sectors that closed in the positive while jute, travel and leisure and paper and printing become the top three sectors that closed in the negative.

The pharmaceuticals sector dominated the turnover chart, accounting for 15.31 percent of the day’s total turnover.

According to a market analyst, reforms were required in most of the regulatory bodies, including the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), in order to bring good governance and transparency in the market.

Already, the BSEC’s officials sat in a meeting yesterday where they planned to urge the new government to bring about the reforms.

Several BSEC sources confirmed that BSEC Chairman Prof Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam is planning to resign. He has not come to office in the last two days.

Chittagong Stock Exchange also made gains with its all-share price index, the prime index of the port city bourse, growing by 545.1 points, 3.54 percent, to settle at 15,938.25.