Dhaka stocks end three-week winning streak

Dhaka stocks snapped their three-week winning run last week as investors focused on profit-taking.

The capital market took a breather from its bullish momentum as investors engaged in broad-based selling after a sustained rally, said EBL Securities in its weekly market review.

"Despite beginning on a bullish impulse with robust participation, the market sentiment turned cautious in the mid-week, triggering three consecutive sessions of selling pressure as investors offloaded recently appreciated holdings," the review said.

However, the benchmark index rebounded in the final trading session, supported by bargain-hunting by opportunistic investors, which partially offset earlier losses and helped the market regain some momentum, EBL Securities added.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), lost 90.5 points, or 1.61 percent, to close at 5,523.78.

Other indices of the DSE also declined, according to DSE data.

The DS30, which tracks blue-chip stocks, fell 1.45 percent to 2,151.08, while the DSES, comprising Shariah-compliant companies, dropped 2.74 percent to 1,196.31.

Turnover, a key indicator of investor activity, fell to Tk 5,748.31 crore, down from Tk 6,491.73 crore the previous week.

On a daily average, turnover stood at Tk 1,149.66 crore, lower than Tk 1,298.34 crore a week earlier.

The engineering sector dominated trading, accounting for 11 percent of the average daily traded value, followed by pharmaceuticals and chemicals, and textiles.

In terms of sector-wise returns, financial institutions led with a 2.99 percent rise. Travel and leisure, services and real estate, and mutual funds also posted notable gains.

Market breadth was negative, with 102 scrips advancing, 260 declining and 35 remaining unchanged.

Among individual issues, CAPM BDBL Mutual Fund 01 was the top gainer, soaring 24.04 percent, while Trust Islami Life Insurance Limited suffered the sharpest fall, losing 20.63 percent during the week.