Bangladesh’s stock market witnessed its steepest decline in over a decade on Wednesday, as panic-selling gripped investors. Of the 393 stocks and mutual funds traded on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), 381 saw losses. The DSEX index plunged by 149 points or 3.02%, closing at 4,802—its lowest level since August 25, 2020. This marks the biggest single-day drop since July 23, 2013.
Analysts suggest the heightened India-Pakistan war tensions may be contributing to investor anxiety. Pakistan’s stock market also recorded a significant drop, while India’s markets initially fell but recovered slightly by closing. No major declines were observed in other global markets.
The day’s trading at the DSE started with a sharp fall. Within the first five minutes, the DSEX lost 50 points, and within 13 minutes, it dropped another 44 points, triggering widespread panic. Although there was a brief attempt at recovery, the index ultimately lost 149 points by the day’s close.
Mohammad Moniruzzaman, Managing Director of Prime Bank Securities, stated that apart from the India-Pakistan conflict, no other negative news surfaced during the trading day, making the geopolitical tension the most likely cause of the selloff.
Abu Ahmed, Chairman of the state-owned Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB), noted that while the Russia-Ukraine war had a more substantial impact previously, current investor frustration is reflected in this steep fall.
A high-level emergency meeting with Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus has been scheduled for Sunday to address the stock market crisis, according to the Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance.
Notably, early trading volume reached BDT 900 million in just 15 minutes. However, the index was most impacted by large-cap stocks such as Islami Bank, Walton, BAT Bangladesh, BRAC Bank, Beximco Pharma, and Grameenphone, rather than smaller firms.
