Stocks open down, Jamuna almost flat

Dhaka, Jan 15 (bdprem.com)—Stocks opened downbeat Wednesday on the second day of spot trading in shares of state-owned Meghna Petroleum while Jamuna Oil--which debuted the previous week--opened almost flat. The market was paced by shares in mutual funds, insurance, pharmaceuticals and banks. Your Ad Here Dhaka Stock Exchange kicked off with a decline in the general index, which recovered losses significantly after the second hour of trading but started to fall again during the midday sessions. The benchmark DGEN or general index stood at 2938.63 at 1.08 pm, down 0.59 points or 0.02 percent. The DSI or all share price index was up 0.41 points or 0.01 percent at 2484.67. Turnover stood at Tk 1.09 billion from trading of 5,785,378 shares. Of the issues traded 127 gained, 76 lost and 19 held steady. At 1.03 pm AB Bank topped the turnover board, selling down at Tk 2790 from Tuesday's Tk 2835.25. State-run Jamuna oil barely gained, from the previous day's closing of Tk 299.9, to Tk 300. IFIC Bank fell to Tk 2798 from Tk 2830.25. Grameen Mutual Fund One crept down to Tk 85.5 from Tuesday's Tk 86. UCBL fell to Tk 4750 from Tk 4857.25. Among the other scrips on the turnover board, Summit Power, Square Pharma and Prime Bank fell. Fareast Life Insurance and NBL advanced.