The prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange went down 241 points in the last two straight weeks as panic investors dumped their holdings amid fears of a rising trend of Covid-19.
Market analysts said the number of coronavirus infected patients has been rising alarmingly every day which pushed the market down.
Owing to a rising number of infections, investors apprehend that the country could be in for a second round of lockdown, they said.
The spread of such news created a rumour that the stock market may be kept shut again, although the securities regulator assured that there is no such possibility.
If the banks were kept open, so would the market, the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), said in a statement.
The DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), decreased by 107.48 points or 1.98 percent to close at 5,327.
The DSEX went down more than 241 points in the past two consecutive weeks.
The DS30 index, comprising blue chips declined by 52.99 points to finish at 2,020 and the DSE Shariah Index plunged by 29.99 points to close at Tk 1,217.
The total turnover on DSE stood at Tk 30.08 billion in the last week against Tk 26.28 billion in the week before.
The non-bank financial institutions (NBFI) witnessed the highest correction, declining 5.0 percent though Bangladesh Bank increased the dividend limit for NBFIs' to 30 percent, from 15 percent.
It was followed by engineering with 4.10 percent, telecom 3.0 percent, pharmaceuticals 2.70 percent and textile 1.70 percent.
On the other hand, the general insurance sector posted the highest gain of 2.80 percent with nine out of top 10 gainers being insurance companies, followed by food and allied with 1.10 percent.
On the other hand, the port city bourse, the Chattogram Stock Exchange (CSE) also saw a negative trend with its selective category index (CSCX) losing 2.06 percent during the last week to close at 9304.98 points on Thursday.
The All-Share Price Index (CASPI) of the CSE was higher by 2.06 percent during the time to close at 15424.53 points on Thursday.w
Of the 301 issues traded, 54 advanced, 169 declined and 78 remained unchanged on the CSE last week.
