Written by The Banking Post
Bangladesh’s stock market extended its strong rally this week, with the benchmark DSEX index crossing the 5,900-point mark for the first time in nearly two years as investor confidence strengthened on the back of sweeping regulatory reforms and capital market-friendly fiscal measures.
The benchmark index closed the week at 5,900.35, gaining 96 points, or 1.66 percent, after advancing in four of the five trading sessions. The final session saw a modest pullback as investors locked in profits.
Market analysts said optimism over recent reforms by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission> (BSEC), coupled with supportive measures in the approved Finance Bill 2026, continued to fuel buying interest.
“The market-friendly fiscal measures and the new commission’s reform initiatives outweighed concerns over the possibility of renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East,” a leading stockbroker said.
Expectations of more investor-friendly margin loan rules, faster trade settlement and the introduction of scrip netting also boosted market sentiment, analysts said.
Investor confidence has improved significantly since Masud Khan assumed office as BSEC chairman in early June. Since then, the regulator has introduced a series of reforms, including lifting floor prices on the remaining two stocks, restoring stock exchanges’ authority to set circuit breakers and strengthening market surveillance.
This week, the regulator approved the introduction of intra-day trading, a major reform aimed at improving liquidity, enhancing price discovery and aligning Bangladesh’s capital market with international practices.
The BSEC also sought public opinion on proposed amendments to the Margin Rules 2025 to make margin lending more investor-friendly and launched a comprehensive overhaul of the initial public offering (IPO) framework to simplify listings and attract fundamentally strong companies.
The approved Finance Bill 2026 further supported market sentiment by lowering tax on dividend income, removing the investment ceiling for tax rebates on mutual fund investments and extending tax exemptions on income from zero-coupon bonds for individual investors.
The DS30 index gained 50 points to close at 2,227, while the Shariah-based DSES index rose 18 points to 1,207.
Large-cap stocks led the rally, with BRAC Bank, LafargeHolcim Bangladesh, Square Pharmaceuticals, Islami Bank and Pubali Bank making the biggest contributions to the benchmark’s gains.
Trading activity also strengthened, with weekly turnover rising to Tk 73.7 billion from Tk 69.2 billion a week earlier. Average daily turnover increased 6.5 percent to Tk 14.75 billion.
The general insurance sector accounted for the largest share of turnover, followed by textiles and pharmaceuticals. Cement stocks posted the strongest sectoral gains, followed by banking, engineering, food, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications.
Among individual stocks, Lovello Ice Cream emerged as the week’s most-traded issue, followed by Malek Spinning, Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, BRAC Bank and LafargeHolcim Bangladesh.
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also ended the week higher, with its CASPI rising 299 points to 15,814 and the CSCX advancing 207 points to 9,700.
