The key indices of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) extended losses today as persisting uncertainty over the global economy and the commodity market volatility keep hurting investors' sentiment.
The DSEX, the benchmark index of the premier bourse of the country, slipped 31.81 points, 0.47 per cent, to 6,662 at the end of the day, the lowest level in the past one year. Turnover, an important indicator of the market, dropped to Tk 490 crore, a decrease of 15 per cent from a day earlier.
According to market analysts, investors preferred to hold onto their cash fearing a price hike of necessities during Ramadan and for the worldwide ongoing economic turmoil. Both the DS30, the blue-chip index, and the DSES, the Shariah-based index, gave up 5.5 points and 4.5 points, respectively.
Losers outnumbered gainers with 293 stocks declining, 44 advancing and 38 remaining unchanged.
Similarly, the CASPI, the broad index of the Chittagong Stock Exchange lost 79.36 points, or 0.40 per cent, to close at 19,567.