The Dhaka stock market fell on Sunday, snapping a two-session rally as investors locked in gains from recently appreciated shares, dragging turnover lower and pushing most sectors into negative territory.
The benchmark DSEX index declined 21.5 points, or 0.4 per cent, to close at 5,640, compared with 5,661 in the previous session, as sustained selling pressure outweighed selective buying in large-cap stocks.
Market turnover fell 16.3 per cent to Tk1,002.4 crore from Tk1,197.2 crore in the previous session, while trading volume dropped 25 per cent to 329 million shares. Total trades also declined 7.8 per cent to 251,939.
The market’s early-week weakness was driven largely by profit-taking in stocks that had rallied in prior sessions, with investors shifting to a more cautious stance amid limited fresh catalysts.
Most sectors ended lower. Services and real estate led losses with a 3.9 per cent decline in market capitalisation, followed by miscellaneous with a 3.4 per cent decline and general insurance with a 2.1 per cent decline in prices on average.
Telecommunication gained 1.5 per cent, while pharma and chemicals rose 0.5 per cent and food and allied advanced 0.3 per cent, offering limited support.
Pharma and chemicals accounted for the largest 13 per cent share of daily turnover, followed by engineering and textile.
Out of 396 traded issues, 65 advanced while 294 declined and 37 remained unchanged, underscoring the breadth of the downturn.
Beximco Pharma was the most actively traded stock with a turnover of Tk50.9 crore, accounting for 5.1 per cent of total market turnover. It was followed by Summit Alliance Port, IPDC, Robi Axiata and NCC Bank.
Among gainers, First Prime Mutual Fund rose 7.62 per cent, Simtex gained 5.7 per cent, KDS Accessories advanced 4.65 per cent, ICB Agrani Mutual Fund One increased 4.29 per cent and Golden Harvest Agro gained 3.95 per cent.
On the losing side, Meghna PET, Beximco Limited, Regent Textile, Tung Hai Knitting and Usmania Glass Sheet Factory all hit the lower circuit, falling nearly 10 per cent as the Dhaka bourse flagged risks in actively traded stocks despite ongoing operational challenges.
Regulators and the Dhaka Stock Exchange also discussed strengthening real-time surveillance to curb market manipulation.
At the Chittagong Stock Exchange, the CSCX fell 69.3 points to 9,328, while the CASPI dropped 116.6 points to 15,250. Turnover on the port city bourse plunged 64 per cent to Tk30.4 crore.
Market analysts said profit-taking in recently advanced stocks weighed on sentiment throughout the session, with investors locking in gains amid a lack of strong new triggers to sustain the rally.
