Stocks rebound on both bourses

Business Desk :

Stocks on Monday edged higher after three consecutive sessions of decline as investors selectively accumulated beaten-down stocks, although cautious sentiment continued to prevail ahead of the national election and upcoming corporate earnings announcements.

DSEX, the broad index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), advanced by 8.4 points or 0.2per cent to settle at 5,081 points, as against 5,072 points in the previous trading session.

The session witnessed mild volatility as investors remained active on both sides of the trading fence; however, buyers gained a marginal upper hand due to selective accumulation in large-cap issues, supporting the benchmark index to close in positive territory.

However, market turnover decreased by 6.5per cent to a Taka 4.9 billion from Taka 5.3 billion in the previous session.

On the sectoral front, General Insurance (20.9per cent) issues exerted the highest turnover, followed by Pharma (10.9per cent) and Life Insurance (10.7per cent) sectors.

Sectors mostly displayed mixed returns, out of which Travel (-0.8per cent), Financial Institution (-0.7per cent) and Mutual Fund (-0.6per cent) exerted the most corrections, while Life Insurance (3.3per cent), Jute (2.1per cent) and Telecom (1.0per cent) exhibited the most positive returns.

The port city bourse, CSE, also settled on a positive zone. The Selective Categories’ Index (CSCX) and All Share Price Index (CASPI) advanced by 25.2 points and 43.1 points, respectively.