The stock market suffered another major setback on Monday as heavy selling pressure pushed most shares lower, extending the losses seen on the first trading day of the week.
Although trading on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) started on a positive note, the gains did not last long. Within the first few minutes, sellers took control of the market and prices began to fall. The selling pressure increased throughout the day and became even stronger during the last one and a half hours of trading.
As a result, the DSE's benchmark index, DSEX, fell by 85 points to close at 5,554. The DSE Shariah Index lost 19 points to 1,129, while the DS30 Index, which tracks leading blue-chip companies, dropped 35 points to 2,110.
Alongside the sharp fall in prices, trading activity also declined. Total turnover on the DSE stood at Tk8.76 billion, down from Tk10 billion in the previous session. This was the first time since June 2 that daily turnover fell below Tk10 billion, indicating weaker participation from investors.
The broad-based selloff left very few stocks in positive territory. At the end of the session, only 36 companies saw their share prices rise, while 319 declined and 34 remained unchanged. The large number of losing stocks shows that the weakness was spread across the market rather than being limited to a few sectors.
Even fundamentally strong companies failed to attract buyers. Among companies that paid dividends of 10 per cent or more, only 16 gained, while 171 lost value. Most medium-quality stocks also ended lower. The same trend was seen among Z-category companies and mutual funds, where losers heavily outnumbered gainers. In fact, not a single listed mutual fund closed higher during the day.
Market operators said the fall in turnover, combined with the sharp decline in share prices, suggests that buyers remained cautious while selling pressure continued to dominate the market.
Beximco Pharmaceuticals topped the turnover chart with shares worth Tk651 million traded during the session. Summit Alliance Port came next with Tk276 million, followed by National Feed Mills with Tk240 million. Other heavily traded stocks included BD Thai Aluminium, Robi, BRAC Bank, Square Pharmaceuticals, Dominage Steel Building Systems, NCC Bank and Apex Spinning.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended in the red. Its benchmark CASPI index dropped 167 points. Of the 239 companies that took part in trading, 39 advanced, 174 declined and 26 remained unchanged.
However, unlike the DSE, turnover on the CSE increased significantly. Total transactions rose to Tk740 million from Tk300 million in the previous session, showing higher trading activity despite the market's overall decline.
The day's performance suggests that investor confidence remains weak, with selling pressure continuing to outweigh buying interest across both stock exchanges.
