The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) saw its key index edge up by 17.65 points on Wednesday, despite a sharp decline in trading volume compared to the previous session. The benchmark DSEX index closed at 5,316.07 points, while the Shariah-based DSES index rose by 1.95 points to 1,184.95. Meanwhile, the DS30 blue-chip index gained 2.10 points, ending the day at 1,972.20. However, trading volume at the DSE fell significantly. Shares and mutual funds worth Tk 479.8 crore changed hands, down by Tk 97.8 crore from Tuesday’s Tk 577.6 crore. A total of 13.17 crore shares and units were traded through 1,161,189 transactions. Out of the 394 companies that participated in Wednesday’s trading, the prices of 152 stocks rose, 175 declined, and 67 remained unchanged. At the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), the CASPI index inched up by just 0.18 points to close at 14,781.32. The day’s transactions at the CSE were notably sluggish, with a turnover of Tk 4.36 crore—far lower than Tuesday’s Tk 12.62 crore. A total of 195 companies were traded on the CSE, with 69 stocks gaining, 94 declining, and 32 remaining unchanged. Overall, 18.76 lakh shares and units were traded through 2,162 transactions.

Stocks in Dhaka saw a sharp decline last week, with the DSEX falling below 5,300 for the first time in three months as anxious investors sold off to prevent further portfolio losses. The market remained dominated by sellers throughout the week, extending its losing streak for the fourth consecutive week. The market started the week in free fall, hitting session lows across all four days as retail investors, in particular, engaged in panic selling. The main index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), DSEX, finally settled at 5,258, down over 164 points or 3.03 percent from the previous week. The DSEX has lost 476 points in the last four weeks. Read more: Small investors’ woes in stock market not over yet Investors concerned continued to shed their holdings after noting that heavy-weight issues, including mutational companies, continued to fall in the past few weeks, putting further pressure on indices. Investors preferred to trim their equity exposures and adopted a wait-and-see approach amid uncertainties surrounding earnings declarations for June-ending companies. Macroeconomic and regulatory uncertainties also acted as negative catalysts that ignited the selling spree, allowing the bears to retain control for a prolonged period. DSEX, the broad index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, lost 164.1 points, or 3.0 percent, to settle at 5,258 points. Investors' participation in the market continued to fall by 13.3 percent to TK 3,180 million as compared to TK 3,667 million in the previous week.  Read more: BSEC Chairman urges stakeholder cooperation for stock market reforms Investors were primarily active in the banking sector (20.4%), followed by the pharmaceutical sector (16.5%) and the IT sector (11.3%). Sectors closed in the red, with the services sector (-8.8%) experiencing the largest decline. Five large-cap stocks such Islami Bank, Brac Bank, British American Tobacco, Renata and Beacon Pharma together accounted for one-fourth of the index's decline during the week, according to EBL Securities. This week, Tk 52 billion was wiped out from the market capitalization of the DSE, which now stands at Tk 6,691 billion. Over the past four consecutive weeks, the market capitalisation has declined by a total of Tk 242 billion. The market capitalisation is calculated by multiplying a company’s total number of outstanding shares by its current market price. Read more: Share Market Investment Guide: How to Invest in Stocks in Bangladesh The blue-chip DS30 index, a group of 30 prominent companies, also lost 54 points to close at 1,930 while the DSES index, which represents Shariah-based companies, shed 32 points to 1,174.

Small investors in Bangladesh’s stock market remain trapped, with their woes persisting due to a lack of confidence, weak governance and economic instability, despite assurances from regulators of an eventual market rebound, according to experts. “No one, not even the regulator or stock market authorities, pays heed to our screams,” said Saiful Islam, a grocery owner and one of the affected investors,” in a broken voice while talking to UNB regarding the capital market. Saiful invested Tk 14 lakh in 2010 to buy shares of different companies listed in the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE). Dhaka stocks drop in early trading today After graduating in 2004, Saiful found no suitable job and then started a small business in the Motijheel area in 2007 with support from his father-in-law. He made a good profit in the business and invested the money in the share market. In 2010, Saiful invested around Tk 14 lakh, of which Tk 6 lakh was his own and Tk 8 lakh he borrowed from relatives. All of his investment was stuck in shares of different companies due to a major scam in the capital market in 2011. Like Saiful, thousands of investors lost their hard-earned capital in 2011, and after that, some were able to regain part of their capital. However, most of them left the capital market, losing nearly all their investment. Many such investors are still in the market, hoping for a rebound in the DSE, but without any good news. DSEX drops by 43 points as prices of 288 companies fall, Chittagong Stock Exchange follows suit There is no sign of lifting the floor price before the next election. However, economists say that people do not have confidence in the market. The BSEC advises investors to remain patient. Analysts say that the small investors’ woes in the capital market are unlikely to end before the national election as their wait for a good time is prolonged by Bangladesh’s recent ‘instability’. The small investors’ shares were once stuck at the floor price (minimum sale rate) due to the overall economic downturn. The floor price barrier ended after the change in government in Bangladesh. However, the prices of most companies' shares have not increased to the desired level for small investors. Dhaka Stock Exchange sees early week gains This has been painful for many unfortunate small investors in the capital markets, according to market analysts. Policymakers and the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) paint a rosy picture for small investors, saying that the stock markets will rebound with the enlistment of new companies and the injection of large investments. However, the situation for small investors seems hopeless. A large number of shareholders have been stuck with their investments in the capital market for over a decade amid fading hopes. Experts' Analysis Dr ABM Mirza Azizul Islam, an economist and former adviser of a caretaker government, told UNB that there has been a crisis of confidence among investors in the stock market for a long time. “To this are added various economic crises, the international situation, and everything, including elections and national politics. As a result, first of all, steps should be taken to eliminate the trust crisis. In this case, trust should be ensured by establishing good governance,” he added. Dhaka Stock Exchange slips below 5,400-point as Islami Bank shares plummet nearly 10% “That means investors have to be assured that if someone steals their money through manipulation, they will be prosecuted. Besides, the supply of good shares should be increased. Through these two steps, it is possible to solve the market problem. But it is not easy at all,” said Dr Azizul Islam. Dr Abu Ahmed, Chairman of the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) and former professor of Dhaka University’s Economics Department, said there are two crises in the market: one on the demand side and the other in investor confidence. On the supply side, he said, the problem is that there are fewer good companies. As a result, it is a win-win situation for manipulation and syndicates. “All in all, the stock market is currently in an unstable condition and the situation is gradually getting worse. The passage from here is very difficult,” he said. Ahmed also noted that people are sometimes investing in weak shares with the expectation of a big profit, which is not the right way of investing due to a lack of financial literacy. Read mnore: Share Market Investment Guide: How to Invest in Stocks in Bangladesh

Small investors in the stock market are frustrated as their wait for a good time gets delayed by the Bangladesh’s ongoing political unrest. The political impasse over who should oversee the upcoming national polls is thwarting the stock market’s recovery from Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine-Russia war. The small investors’ shares are stuck on the floor price (minimum sale rate) and overall economic downfall. This has been painful for many unfortunate small investors of the capital markets, according to market analysts. Policymakers and the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) paint a rosy picture for small investors saying that stock markets will rebound with enlistment of new companies and injection of big investments. But the situation for the small investors seems to be hopeless. Read: Economy buffeted by political unrest amid declining forex reserves: Analysts A large number of shareholders have remained stuck with their investment in the capital market for over a decade amid fading hopes. “No one, not even the regulator or stock market authorities pay heed to their screams,” Abdul Latif, a grocery owner and one of the affected investors, told UNB in a broken voice. He said he invested Tk13 lakh in 2011 to buy shares of different companies listed in Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE). After graduation in 1998 Latif found no suitable job and then started a small business in the Motjheel area in 2002 with support from his father-in-law. He made a good profit in the business and invested money in the share market. In 2010 Latif invested around Tk13 lakh of which 5 lakh was his own and 8 lakh borrowed from relatives. All of his investment was stuck in shares of different companies due to a big scam in the capital market in 2011. Read: Govt aims to collect 11.2% of GDP in taxes by FY 2025-26 Like Latif, thousands of investors lost their hard-earned capital in 2011, and after that, some were able to gain part of the capita. But most of them left the capital market losing nearly all investment. Many of such investors are still in the market hoping for a rebound in the DSE, but without any good news. There is no sign of lifting the floor price before the next election. However, economists say that people do not have confidence in the market. BSEC advises investors to be patient until the general election is held by January next. Dr ABM Mirza Azizul Islam, an economist and a former adviser of a caretaker government, told UNB that there has been a crisis in investors' confidence in the stock market for a long time. “To this are added various economic crises, the international situation, and everything including elections and national politics,” he said. Read: Despite challenges, govt hoping to restore economy’s pre-Covid momentum in current fiscal As a result, first of all, steps should be taken to eliminate the trust crisis. In this case, trust should be ensured by establishing good governance, he said. That is, the investors have to be given the assurance that if someone steals their money through manipulation, they will be prosecuted. Besides, the supply of good shares should be increased. Through these two steps, it is possible to eliminate the market problem. But it is not easy at all, said Dr Azizul Islam. Dr Abu Ahmed, former professor of Dhaka University’s Economics Department, said there are two crises in the market: one on the demand side and the other in investor confidence. On the supply side, the problem is that there are fewer good companies. As a result, it is a win-win situation for manipulation and syndicates, he said. Read: Country’s first electrical testing laboratory on the cards All in all, the stock market is currently in an unstable condition and gradually the situation is getting worse. The passage from here is very difficult, he said. According to market insiders, the stock market situation is in a dire. The situation is not improving due to political uncertainty ahead of national elections, increases in commodity prices, and various international issues. The market has lost its importance to the government as well. For those who are not directly involved with government policymakers, the stock market is a source of irritation. Their thinking is like this - if there is no stock market, there will be no problem in the country. For these reasons, the government wants to hold the market with floor prices until the next national election. This brings an opportunity for syndicates blessed by the regulatory body to be controlling the market, the market insiders said. They spoke on condition of anonymity. BSEC Chairman Professor Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam told UNB in this regard that the global situation is not in the hands of the regulator or the government. Investors should beware of investing with any company depending on rumours. He also said due to a lack of financial literacy, people are sometimes investing in weak shares with an expectation of big profit which is not the right way of investment. Read: BSEC sits with stock market stakeholders Thursday after drastic fall of share prices

The Ministry of Finance has extended the tenure of banks’ additional investment in the capital market for another year. The Financial Institutions Division of the ministry extended the deadline till December 31, 2023. Last Monday, the Deputy Secretary of the Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance issued the notification. The notification was sent to Bangladesh Bank yesterday. Read more: Despite central bank's green light, banks shy to invest in capital market Time has been given till December 31, 2023 to bring down the additional investment of banks including BDBL in the share market (collectively or individually in the case of holding shares of other companies) to the prescribed limit as stated in the Bank Companies Act, 1991. Besides, in the case of holding the shares of other companies within that extended period, in the case of holding the shares of any company collectively or individually, the over-investing banks cannot increase the respective investment (in the ratio) based on August 31, 2022 in any order.

Investing in the stock market or share market is one of the most popular ways to increase wealth in the modern age. However, investing in the stock market can be difficult, especially if you are a new investor. So, if you are a beginner, the best way you can start is by gaining experience. The share market is a volatile and risky investment, so do your research before making any decisions. Here is what you need to know about investing in the stock market in Bangladesh. Types of Stock Market There are two types of markets in which you can invest - primary and secondary. Let’s take a look at the investment process in both these markets. Primary Market The primary stock market refers to the main market where companies sell their shares to the public. The main goals of the primary stock market are to provide a means for investors to buy public shares and to provide information about company performance. If you want to invest in the primary market, you have to invest in an IPO (Initial Public Offering). Read Accelerating Asia Invests in Three Bangladeshi Startups It is the process through which a private company offers its shares to the public for the first time and becomes a public company. Through the IPO, the company involved provides its name on the stock market as an Initial Public Offering. A company owned by shareholders lets you know the basics of ownership and sells you some part of the company. Secondary Market The secondary stock market refers to a market where stocks that have been sold by their original owners are traded between investors. The secondary market is important because it allows small investors to buy and sell shares of companies that they may not be able to get access to through the primary market. To invest in the secondary market, you will need a BO (Beneficiary Owner’s) account. Opening a BO Account To invest in the stock market in Bangladesh, you need to open a BO account in a broker house. A BO account is like a bank account, but you can open it at a broker’s house. You can deposit and withdraw money in your BO account just like a bank account. Read How to Transform Your Freelancing Career into a Scalable Business? However, there is no need to keep the minimum deposit. You will then decide whether you want to invest in the primary market (IPO) or the secondary market (buy/sell shares). Nowadays, it is easy to open a BO account, deposit money, and buy and sell shares online using different broker’s websites. To open a BO account, you will need to go through some steps. A person can open two BO accounts in one name. One is an individual account; the other is a joint account. Bangladeshi applicants must have an account with any bank in Bangladesh. Nonresident applicants must have an FC or NRB account in Bangladesh. Read Making Investment Decisions: Factors to consider when investing money Upon choosing a brokerage house, you can open a BO account online using the broker’s website or the ways they provide to you. Fill out the form properly. Essential documents/information you will need are a photo of the applicant, a copy of the National Identity Card (NID) of the applicant, joint applicant and nominee (scan/photo), nominee’s picture, copy of the bank check (scan/photo) and picture of the second applicant in case of the joint account. Depending on the broker, you will need to pay Tk. 500- Tk. 2000 while opening a BO account. According to the new rules, to apply for an IPO, an investor must have a minimum mature share of Tk. 20,000 in his BO account number. Shares will be allotted proportionally instead of the IPO lottery. In that case, an investor can deposit Tk. 10,000 for a share. Read B’Yeah: Shaping up the Youth Entrepreneurship Prospects in Bangladesh How to Buy and Sell Stocks in Bangladesh? You can buy and sell stocks by showing up in person at the brokerage office, calling the broker, or initiating a trade via the DSE mobile app. Brokerage houses typically charge a commission anywhere between .25% and .50 % for each transaction. So, if you buy Tk. 1000 stock, the brokerage will charge you Tk. 2.5 if the rate is .25%. However, if you want to trade via DSE mobile app, you will have to register via the brokerage house. Despite being required monthly paid subscription the app has waved the fees due to the Covid 19 last year. What Beginners Should Consider before Investing in Share Market If you are interested in starting investing but don’t know where to start, these five tips can help. Know Your Goals Before you invest in the stock market, you will need to know your goals. What are you hoping to achieve by investing in the stock market? Do you want to make money? Are you looking to make some investments to fund your retirement? Or do you just want to learn about the stock market? Read ​​​​​​​Neuromarketing: How brands psychologically manipulate the consumers Understand How the Stock Market Works You will need to understand how the stock market works before you invest. You will need to understand what the stock market is, what it does, and what it isn’t. You will also need to understand how it affects the economy and what are the risk factors. Learn How to Invest Once you know how the stock market works, you can start learning how to invest. There are lots of different strategies to invest in the stock market, and it can be a bit confusing. You will want to learn about the different types of investments you can make and what they do. Read Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle: Concept, Significance, Practice, Examples Start Small You will want to start small when you invest in the stock market. Start with a small amount of money, and keep your investments low. You can always increase your investment later on. Be Patient You will need to be patient when you invest in the stock market. It can take a while for your investments to grow, and it can be frustrating if they don’t. You will need to stay patient and be willing to wait for your investments to grow. Final Words Investing in the stock market can be a lucrative venture, but it is important to do your research and have a plan in place. Before investing in stocks, you should know the associated risks. Moreover, you should think ahead and stay prepared for potential stock market crashes. In this article, we have discussed a guideline for beginners to invest in the share market of Bangladesh. Hope it helps! Read How to Choose the Right Business Idea?

Investors have lost their capital amounting to Tk 10,261 crore in the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) over the last week with the share prices witnessing a downtrend. According to a market review, the main index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange Index (DSEX), the country's main bourse, shed 167.4 points to 7,076 points during the October 17-21 period. Among the other two DSE indexes, the DSES (Shariah Index) index shed 49 points to 1,518 points and the DS-30 (blue chip index) index lost 19 points to 2,699 points. The prices of 31 shares, out of those of 382 companies, marked a rise in the DSE during the one-week period. Besides, the share prices of 338 companies declined and the share prices of nine companies remained unchanged. Read: Tk 850-crore revolving fund for capital market in the offing Of the 362 companies traded during the last week, the prices of 124 companies marked a rise. Besides, the share prices of 231 companies declined and that of 23 companies remained unchanged. The market capitalization of DSE has come down from Tk 10,261.56 crore to Tk 5,69,851.24 crore last week (3rd week in Oct) due to the fall in the prices of the shares of most of the companies. The total transaction volume of the market was Tk 5,80,112.81 crore in the second week of October.

The probe committee, formed by the Bangladesh Security and Exchange Commission, has primarily found the involvement of nine companies in the recent share market price manipulation. “Further investigation is underway. The matter is thoroughly being scrutinized, and the people concerned will be called to be present before the investigation committee, if necessary,” said BSEC spokesperson Mohammad Rezaul Karim on Saturday. Also read: Insider trading: BSEC probes Dominage Steel for 'unusual' stock movement According to the BSEC, the companies are: Fu-Wang Ceramics Industry Ltd, Beacon Pharmaceuticals Limited and Anwar Galvanizing Limited in the engineering sector; Paper Processing & Packaging Ltd, National Feed Mill Ltd, Dhaka Dying, GBB Power Limited in the energy sector, and Emerald Oil Industries Ltd and Bangladesh National Insurance.

Asian shares were mixed Friday as jubilance over positive U.S. economic data and a Wall Street record high were tempered by caution in the region, where the coronavirus vaccine rollout has lagged. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.1% to 29,674.31 in morning trading. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell nearly 0.1% to 7,052.30. South Korea’s Kospi was little changed, inching up less than 0.1% to 3,194.49. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng inched down less than 0.1% to 28,771.21, while the Shanghai Composite added 0.2% to 3,406.93. The contrast in the speed of the vaccine rollout has been striking between the U.S. and Asia. Nearly half of American adults have gotten at least one dose of the vaccine, and about 30% of adults in the U.S. have been fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Japan, where inoculations for the public have barely started, has seen a resurgence of infections in recent weeks. The country’s western metropolis of Osaka reported over 1,200 new infections Thursday, its highest since the pandemic began. A top ruling party official suggested the possibility of canceling the Tokyo Olympics, set to start in July, if infections continue to surge. Also read: Asian shares fall back after S&P 500 hits fresh record high  Prakash Sakpal and Nicholas Mapa, senior economists for ING, said the markets are watching the meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and President Joe Biden, set for the weekend, data from China, including GDP and retail sales, as well as for further news on the pandemic. “Asian markets will likely track gains overnight with optimism driven by positive US data highlighted by retail sales. Investors now turn their focus to a string of China data reports,” they said in a report. Wall Street notched more milestones, as a broad market rally pushed the S&P 500 to an all-time high and the Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed above the 34,000 mark for the first time. The S&P 500 rose 1.1%, with technology, health care and communication stocks accounting for much of the upward moves. Only energy and financial companies closed lower. Bond yields fell. The rally came as investors welcomed a suite of encouraging economic reports showing how hungry Americans are to spend again, how fewer workers are losing their jobs and how much fatter corporate profits are getting. Expectations are very high on Wall Street that the economy — and thus corporate profits — are in the midst of exploding out of the cavern created by the pandemic, thanks to COVID-19 vaccinations and massive support from the U.S. government and Federal Reserve. New data on retail sales and jobless claims Thursday helped bolster the view that the economic recovery is accelerating. Also read: Asian shares sink after tech rout pulls Nasdaq 3.5% lower “Another day, another record,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance. “The stock market continues to validate the optimistic forecasts from last year, which predicted a strong economy that was driven by consumers emerging from their homes, emboldened by vaccinations or by a belief that the worst of COVID was behind us.” The S&P 500 rose 45.76 points to 4,170.42, surpassing its previous record high of 4,141.59 set on Tuesday. The Dow climbed 305.10 points, or 0.9%, to 34,035.99. The Nasdaq composite added 180.92 points, or 1.3%, to 14,038.76, while the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies picked up 9.35 points, or 0.4%, to 2,257.07. U.S. retail sales jumped 9.8% in March from February, blowing past economists’ forecasts for 5.5% growth. Much of the surge was due to $1,400 payments from the U.S. government’s latest economic rescue effort hitting households’ bank accounts. Economists said it shows how primed people are to spend as the economy reopens and conditions brighten. That’s huge for an economy that’s made up mostly of consumer spending. Another report gave an encouraging read on the job market, showing 576,000 people applied for unemployment benefits last week. That’s well below the 700,000 that economists had forecast and down from 769,000 the prior week. It’s also the lowest number since the pandemic. Adding to the optimism, more big U.S. companies reported even healthier profits for the first three months of 2021 than analysts had forecast. Expectations are already high for this earnings reporting season, which unofficially got underway on Wednesday and could result in the strongest growth in more than a decade. “You’ve got various pockets of the market now starting to show a broadening recovery,” said Sameer Samana, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute. BlackRock, PepsiCo and UnitedHealth Group all reported bigger profits for the first quarter than analysts expected. BlackRock rose 2.1%, PepsiCo added 0.1% and UnitedHealth climbed 3.8%. Also read: Asian shares fall on fears over US-China tariffs standoff Even Delta Air Lines, which reported weaker results for the start of 2021 than expected, highlighted areas of optimism. It said it could return to making profits by late summer if the recovery it’s seeing in air travel continues. Its shares fell 2.8%. In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude fell 19 cents to $63.27 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, slipped 19 cents to $66.75 a barrel. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched up to 108.91 Japanese yen from 108.77 yen. The euro cost $1.1956, down from $1.1984.

The capital market will continue its operation in the interest of investors in any situation during the Covid-19 pandemic if the banking activities continue. The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) said this against the backdrop of the government’s preparation for imposing full lockdown from April 14 next. A notice posted on the official website of the BSEC said: "[The] capital market will continue operation at [in] the interest of investors in any situation during the pandemic of Covid-19 if the banking activities continue."   Also read: Stock market reforms to fail if rumours rule the roost: Minister  It said all the transactions in the capital market will continue in the interest of investors and urged the investors not to pay heed to any rumor. According to sources at the BSEC, if the banks remain open during the lockdown, the capital market will also remain open. This instruction has been given to two stock exchanges -- Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE). Also read: BSEC to help boost startup, venture capital ecosystem: Chairman They said the commission has instructed the DSE to keep the capital market open if banks are open. The capital market will operate utilising smaller shifts and work-from-home facilities. Earlier, from March 26 to May 31 last year, transactions in the capital market were closed due to the outbreak of Coronavirus pandemic. Also read: Insider trading: BSEC probes Dominage Steel for 'unusual' stock movement