STAR BUSINESS REPORT

The stock market in Bangladesh reopened yesterday after a nine-day extended Eid holiday, showing a mixed performance as investor sentiment was dampened following the US administration’s imposition of a 37 percent tariff on Bangladeshi products entering the American market.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange saw a decline, while the Chittagong Stock Exchange experienced a modest rise.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the country’s premier bourse, lost 13.96 points, or 0.26 percent, to close at 5,205.19.

Among the other two indices, the DSES, which tracks Shariah-compliant firms, slipped 0.28 points to 1,167.83, while the DS30, comprising blue-chip stocks, rose by 14.65 points to 1,929.34.

Out of the traded securities, 101 saw their prices rise, 262 closed lower, and 30 remained unchanged.

The day’s turnover increased by 31.87 percent to Tk 415 crore compared to the last trading session. The pharmaceuticals sector dominated the turnover chart, accounting for 21.05 percent of the total.

Beximco Pharmaceuticals Limited emerged as the most traded share, with a turnover of Tk 30.7 crore.

The decline mirrors Wall Street’s reaction, where the market lost over $5 trillion in capitalisation after President Donald Trump’s tariff announcement.

Washington last week claimed that Bangladesh imposes an effective 74 percent tariff on American goods and responded with a 37 percent reciprocal tariff on Bangladeshi exports.

Sector-wise, mutual funds, ceramics, and pharmaceuticals were the top three sectors that closed in positive territory, while textiles, jute, and non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) were the top three sectors that closed in negative territory, according to the day’s market update by UCB Stock Brokerage.

BRAC EPL Stock Broker, in its market update, noted that most large-cap sectors posted negative performances yesterday.

NBFIs experienced the highest loss of 1.73 percent, followed by food and allied (1.05 percent), engineering (0.86 percent), banking (0.51 percent), and telecommunications (0.27 percent).

However, the fuel and power sector logged a gain of 0.06 percent, and the pharmaceuticals sector posted a 1.26 percent rise.

At the Chittagong Stock Exchange, the CSE All-Share Price Index (CASPI), the key index of the port city bourse, edged up by 19.42 points, or 0.13 percent, to close the day at 14,560.77.