Stocks return to green on buying spree

Stocks returned to green Tuesday, snapping a two days profit taking sale pressure, as some enthusiastic investors were active on sector specific stocks.

Analysts said the market finished higher amid ongoing first quarter (Q1) corporate earnings disclosure coupled with some company specific positive news as several earnings disclosure attracted investors to take position.

About 57 listed companies disclosed un-audited first quarter (Q1) earnings Tuesday so far. Of them, earnings of 30 companies rose while 27 declined for July-September period of 2016 compared to the same period a year ago.

The market started with an upward trend which sustained till end of the session amid modest volatility in the initial hour, ultimately ended nearly 20 points higher.

At the end of session, DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up by 19.82 points or 0.43 per cent to settle at 4,664.81 over the previous day.

The two other indices also edged higher. The DS30 comprising blue chips advanced 5.92 points or 0.34 per cent to finish at 1,752.56. The DSE Shariah Index (DSES) gained 1.40 points or 0.12 per cent to close at 1,118.48.

Turnover, the crucial indicator of the market, remained promising as the total turnover amounted to Tk 6.46 billion on DSE, which was 0.32 per cent higher than the previous day`s turnover of Tk 6.44 billion.

Engineering sector remained the turnover leader, accounting for 20 per cent of the day`s total turnover value, followed by pharmaceuticals 15 per cent and textile 11 per cent.

Asian Tiger Capital Partners, an asset management company, said, "The market rebounded strongly following two consecutive losing spells resulting from some impressive earnings declarations".

The asset management company noted that session began tentatively in the morning but started to move higher as soon as earnings declarations began to appear and the positive vibe prevailed till the end of the session.

EBL Securities, a stockbroker, said, "Investors` sentiment regarding the market stayed positive and buoyancy prevailed throughout the session after disclosing particular better corporate earnings and some company specific positive news".

The stockbroker noted that the market participants` also remained active on both sides of the fence.

The port city bourse, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), also finished marginally higher with its Selective Categories Index- CSCX - advancing 22 points to settle at 8,723.82 points.

Gainers beat losers as 116 issues closed higher, 92 closed lower and 34 remained unchanged on the CSE.

The port city bourse traded 12.44 million shares and mutual fund units` worth over Tk 403 million in turnover.