Ahsan Habib

Stocks of Delta Life Insurance Company Limited have tripled in value over the past six months even though the company reported lower revenue in its recent financial disclosure, raising concerns among analysts that manipulation might be taking place behind the scenes.

Production of Emerald Oil, a listed rice bran oil producer, has discontinued since 2017, so it has been incurring losses every year since then. But its stock has risen a staggering 223 per cent in the last one year.

The trading of treasury bonds began in the secondary market of the Dhaka Stock Exchange yesterday, ending a wait of more than a decade and creating one more investment tool for the retail investors reliant only on shares and mutual funds.

A company’s way of raising funds should be determined by analysing its financial statements so that its sustainability does not face any threat, said Tanzim Alamgir, managing director of UCB Investments, a merchant bank.

NRB Bank has incurred a loss of Tk 103 crore as it intentionally became involved in unethical trading practices in the stock market to favour gamblers, which weakened the financial health of the lender and put depositors’ money at risk.

A steep rise in debt and a fall in sales have sent Meghna Condensed Milk, a listed concern of Meghna Group of Industries-KA (MGOLD) Ltd, into the stock market’s non-performing category.

The stock market regulator’s initiatives such as roadshows in various countries to bring in investments appear to have produced no significant positive outcome as foreign investors reduced their stakes in the listed companies to book profits.

The government has cut the interest rate on savings certificates and wage-earner bonds by 1 to 3 percentage points – a move that may help the authorities save but hurt the middle-income group dependent on the returns to make a living.

The stock market’s recent growth spurt slowed last week as the tension between the central bank and the stock market regulator over some policy issues has rattled investors.

Bangladesh Bank yesterday fined NRB Bank Tk 49.50 lakh for breaching securities rules by buying the shares of Pioneer Insurance beyond the investment ceiling.

Last week will certainly remain memorable for the stock market, with its indexes reaching record levels every day while market capitalisation a historical high over the five-day period.

There is an ongoing debate in the share market whether securities on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) are overvalued as the benchmark index shows no signs of slowing down after hitting the historic high last month.

The Dhaka bourse scaled new heights yesterday, crossing 7,000 points as buoyant investors increased their bets in hopes that the market would maintain its upward trend in the coming days.

Stocks of Tamijuddin Textile Mills have skyrocketed tenfold in a span of less than three months since it was relisted at the Dhaka bourse last June.

August was a record-breaking month for the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) as all major market indexes and measures, including market capitalisation, reached historical highs.

Habibur Rahman, a Chattogram-based schoolbag manufacturer, suddenly fell into deep financial peril ever since the coronavirus pandemic first reached Bangladesh in March 2020.

Investor participation in the local stock market’s banking, non-bank financial institution (NBFI), and cement sectors soared last week while the insurance sector was lacklustre in attracting funds.

The stock market regulator has decided to extend loan facilities for investors to buy stocks when the index is at its historical highest level despite analysts’ criticism against loan-based investment in the stock market.

Walton Hi-tech Industries saw its profits double in the recently concluded fiscal 2020-21, riding on higher sales of air conditioners and refrigerators past an earnings decline for the pandemic.

Berger Paints Bangladesh’s profit jumped seven times as its business returned to normalcy in the April to June quarter, recouping the losses incurred a year ago owing to the coronavirus pandemic.