B Mirror Report: Bangladesh’s stock markets saw tremendous volatility on Wednesday, March 4, the fourth trading day of the week. Most companies’ share prices rose by the end of the day amid this turbulence; at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), the nation’s main bourse, more than twice as many companies’ shares rose as those that fell. Despite the price gains, the overall market index and trading volume decreased.

At the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), many companies also saw price declines, resulting in a drop in both the overall index and turnover.

Earlier, on Sunday (March 1), following a joint attack by the United States and Israel in Iran, the DSE’s benchmark index fell by 223 points at the start of trading. Although the decline eased somewhat during the day, the index closed 138 points lower. On Monday, the index recovered by 72 points, but it fell again by 208 points on Tuesday.

In this context, trading on Wednesday began with price declines in most companies’ shares at the DSE, causing the index to start in negative territory. However, after the first hour, more shares began to gain, and the index moved upward. By the end of the session, the majority of companies had posted price increases. Nevertheless, declines in some large-cap stocks pushed the overall index slightly into negative territory.

By the close of trading, the DSE recorded price increases in 227 companies’ shares and units, while 112 companies saw declines and 54 remained unchanged. Among well-performing companies (those giving 10% or higher dividends), 107 saw price gains, 59 saw declines, and 40 remained unchanged. Among mid-tier companies (those giving less than 10% dividends), 44 shares rose, 25 fell, and 9 remained unchanged.

Within the ‘Z’ group companies, 76 shares increased, 28 decreased, and 5 were unchanged. Among listed mutual funds, 10 rose, 4 fell, and 20 remained steady.

Despite most shares rising, the DSE’s main benchmark, the DSEX, fell by 2 points to close at 5,323 points. The Shariah-based DSES index decreased by 0.87 points to 1,162 points, while the blue-chip DS30 index slipped 4 points to 2,045 points.

Trading volume at the DSE also declined, totaling Tk 582.37 crore, down from Tk 885.12 crore on the previous trading day, a decrease of Tk 302.75 crore. Orion Infusion recorded the highest turnover of Tk 39.54 crore, followed by City Bank at Tk 32.36 crore and Summit Alliance Port at Tk 14.04 crore. Other top traded companies included Khan Brothers PP Oven Bag, BRAC Bank, C Pearl Beach Resort, Asiatic Laboratories, Robi, Dhaka Bank, and Grameenphone.

At the CSE, the overall CASPI index fell by 68 points. Of the 170 companies traded, 58 saw price gains, 96 fell, and 16 remained unchanged. Turnover at the CSE amounted to Tk 8.86 crore, down from Tk 23.56 crore on the previous day.