Stocks ride high as PM steps in

The battered index of Dhaka Stock Exchange has soared over seven percent, hours before prime minister Sheikh Hasina is to have an emergency meeting on the capital market on Wednesday evening. Updates

Dhaka, Nov 16 (bdnews24.com)—The battered index of Dhaka Stock Exchange has soared over seven percent, hours before prime minister Sheikh Hasina is to have an emergency meeting on the capital market on Wednesday evening.

The meeting with the market stakeholders, slated for 7pm on Wednesday at her official residence Ganabhaban, comes in the wake of massive falls in stock prices for three consecutive days after the nine-day Eid recess and a series of street protests by small investors.

The DSE general index rose 338.23 points or 7.27 percent to 4987.56 points at the close of the second last day of the week's trading.

Shares worth Tk 2.85 billion changed hands with 245 advancing and only 10 declining.

The DGEN gained 312 points to 4961 points by 12.30pm when most of the shares reached their tipping point (circuit breakers).

The index shot up a staggering 242 points in five minutes and marked a 252.15 points rise in the first 10 minutes of trading with the DGEN standing at 4901.48 points, apparently buoyed by the prime minister's move.

The key index had plummeted 559 points from the start of the week's trading. It lost 341 points on Sunday and Monday, and on Tuesday, it shed 228.20 points or 4.67 percent to stand at 4649.32 points at close.

The freefall caused small, individual investors to stage demonstrations in the streets before the premier bourse, Securities and Exchange Commission and Bangladesh Bank in Motijheel business district. They have long been demanding that the prime minister intervene to prop the sagging market up.

The retail investors started demonstrating in the street before the DSE after the start of trading on Wednesday, blocking traffic. They said they wanted their representation in the meeting with the prime minister.

Securities and Exchange Commission chairman M Khairul Hossain saw Hasina on Tuesday evening and later said the finance minister, Bangladesh Bank governor, Bank and Financial Institutions Division secretary, National Board of Revenue chief, head of Investment Corporation of Bangladesh and the representatives of banks and insurance companies are expected to attend the meeting.

After the December-January capital market scam, the government formed a committee to investigate the matter. Several steps, including overhaul of SEC, were taken following the panel's proposals.

Several other steps were also taken by bankers, the central bank, NBR and ICB to shore up the sagging stock market.

But nothing seemed to be working out as the prices of shares have been maintaining the downward trend.

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