Dhaka stocks sink for second day

Dhaka stocks continued their slump for the second consecutive session today, as the poor performance of large-cap sectors dragged the indexes down, while turnover also declined.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the bourse, declined 80.75 points, or 1.55 percent, to close at 5,116.51, according to DSE data.

Other indices followed the pattern of negative performance, as the Shariah-based DSES and the blue-chip DS30 also edged lower.

The market closed in the red as most large-cap sectors posted negative performances, BRAC EPL Stock Brokerage Ltd said in its daily market update.

Turnover, a key gauge of investor activity, fell to Tk 487.62 crore from Tk 606 crore in the previous session, reflecting lower participation in line with the market slump.

Block trades—high-volume transactions involving large numbers of securities—contributed 1.3 percent of the overall market turnover.

Market breadth was firmly negative, with 33 issues advancing, 328 declining, and 35 remaining unchanged.

Among the major sectors, non-bank financial institutions suffered the steepest decline, tumbling 3.23 percent.

The sectoral slide was followed by engineering, which shed 2.11 percent, while fuel and power dropped 1.45 percent.

Pharmaceuticals lost 1.38 percent, food and allied slipped 1.36 percent, banks retreated 1.10 percent, and telecommunications eased 0.91 percent.

Orion Infusion emerged as the most traded stock, posting a turnover of Tk 32.7 crore, said BRAC EPL.

On the performance table, ICB Islamic Bank surged 8.7 percent to top the gainers' list, while LankaBangla Finance slumped 12.73 percent, making it the worst performer of the session.