Stock indices nosedive amid unrest

Major indices of the stock market in Bangladesh took a steep dive today, hitting a three-year low as investors started offloading shares in fear that the country’s economy may deteriorate further amid the ongoing unrest.
The DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), plunged by about 1.96 percent from the previous session to close at 5,229 points.
This was its steeping fall since May 2022, when the main index of the country’s premier bourse dropped 135 points, or over 2 percent of its total at the time.
After speaking with the officials of at least five brokerage houses, The Daily Star found that their offices were open albeit with limited staff while the doors were practically shuttered.
Still, almost no investors came while the few that did were mostly there to sell.
“As political instability is growing, investors are worried that the market could close again due to another internet blackout. So, they are selling their shares,” said a senior official of a leading brokerage house.
Following weeks of unrest, the protestors called for a countrywide non-cooperation movement starting today to drive home their one-point demand — the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The DS30, an index comprising blue-chip stocks, fell by 2.2 percent to 1,859 points while the DSES, which measures the performance of shariah-compliant companies, dipped by 1.84 percent to 1,143 points.
A merchant banker informed that while he did not receive any buying orders, at least 25 selling orders were placed today.
“It is understandable that people are panicked about the political situation as there is no indication that the situation will improve anytime soon,” he said.
This is because investments may lose value or even become a loss if the performance of listed companies is badly hit for having to halt production amid the political instability.
“So, they are selling their shares,” the merchant banker added.
He also informed that people are preferring to keep cash in hand rather than invest as they fear another internet outage could disrupt trading activities.
Turnover, which measures the total value of shares traded during the session, fell by 63 points to Tk 207 crore. Of the stocks to witness trade, only six advanced, 372 declined and 19 remained the same.
Unilever Consumer Care saw the most trade, with Tk 48 crore worth of its shares transacted, followed by Heidelberg Materials, Square Pharmaceuticals, Express Insurance, and British American Tobacco (BAT) Bangladesh.
However, the performance of BAT Bangladesh dragged down the DSEX the most, claiming around 7 points, while Renata took away 6 points, Brac Bank 5 points, Grameenphone 5 points and Beximco Pharmaceuticals 4 points, according to LankaBangla Securities.
Shyampur Sugar Mills, a junk stock, was the day’s top gainer with a rise of about 5 percent while Unilever Consumer Care advanced 2 percent.
However, Zeal Bangla Sugar Mills dropped the most, with its share value eroding by 3 percent, followed by Monno Agro and General Machinery and Eastern Lubricants with 2.9 percent each.
The trend was similar at the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) as the Caspi, the broad index of the port city bourse, shed 1.27 percent to close at 14,926 points.