Dhaka stocks ended in the red despite corporate tax cut

Most shares on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) fell today despite a cut in the corporate tax rate for listed companies.

The DSEX, the benchmark index of the premier bourse of Bangladesh, shed 48 points, or 0.75 per cent, to 6,438 at the end of the day.

Turnover, an important indicator of the market, dropped to Tk 636 crore, down 16 per cent from the previous day's Tk 758 crore.

Of the traded issues, 53 advanced and 306 declined while 19 securities remained unchanged.

Shinepukur Ceramics became the most traded stock with shares worth Tk 39 crore changing hands, followed by Beximco, BDCOM Online, IPDC Finance, and Bangladesh Shipping Corporation.

Meghna Insurance topped the gainers' list, rising 9.91 per cent. Dulamia Cotton Spinning Mills, Monno Fabrics, Shinepukur Ceramics, and Shurwid Industries also saw significant gain.

The government has proposed a 2.5 percentage point cut in corporate tax rates for the listed companies in the national budget unveiled for the next fiscal year in a bid to develop the stock market and attract investments.

This brings down the corporate tax rate to 20 per cent from 22.5 per cent for the publicly-traded firms that have issued shares worth more than 10 per cent of their paid-up capital through initial public offerings.

For the listed companies that have offloaded equities worth 10 per cent or fewer, the rate has been kept unchanged at 22.5 per cent.