NBFI, pharma drag Dhaka stocks down

Shares at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) snapped a three‑day rally today as losses in non‑bank financial institutions and pharmaceuticals dragged the key indexes lower, while turnover also declined.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the bourse, dropped 35.05 points, or 0.64 percent, to close at 5,380.07, according to DSE data.

Other indices followed the performance of the main index as both Shariah-based DSES and the blue-chip DS30 ended the day lower.

Turnover, a key indicator of investor activity, stood at Tk 564.18 crore, down significantly from Tk 708.94 crore in the previous session, reflecting lower investor participation in line with the market downturn.

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

Block trades, high-volume transactions involving large numbers of securities, contributed 7.6 percent of the overall market turnover.

Market breadth was mostly negative, with 70 issues advancing against 282 declining, while 44 remained unchanged.

Among the major sectors, shares of NBFIs lost the most at 1.67 percent, followed by pharmaceuticals at 0.77 percent, fuel and power at 0.68 percent, engineering at 0.61 percent, banks at 0.52 percent, food and allied at 0.30 percent and telecom at 0.09 percent.

Summit Alliance Port was the most traded share with a turnover of Tk 24.7 crore, BRAC EPL said.

On the day's performance table, First Security Islami Bank surged 10 percent to top the gainers' list, while Progressive Life Insurance Co dropped 7.95 percent, becoming the worst performer of the session.