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Dividend Season Disappoints: Stocks Tumble in Dhaka & Chattogram

When Dividends Fail to Lift the Market

Unusual Decline in Dhaka and Chattogram Stock Exchanges Despite Dividend Season

October 28, 2025 | Business Desk

In a striking deviation from traditional market behavior, Bangladesh’s stock market continues to slide even amid the dividend declaration season—usually a period marked by optimism and upward momentum.

On Tuesday (October 28), for the second consecutive day, both the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chattogram Stock Exchange (CSE) ended in decline, despite initial gains in morning trading. This pattern—early rise followed by a late-day fall—has become a recurring trend in recent sessions.

A Market Defying Expectations

Typically, dividend announcements inject fresh enthusiasm into the market, prompting investors to rally around potential high-return stocks. This year, however, the situation is reversed. Analysts attribute this paradox to a growing practice known as “netting,” a short-term trading strategy used by certain investors to lock in quick profits.

Through netting, investors buy shares at the close of trading and sell them the next morning, capitalizing on short-term price fluctuations. While this technique boosts the overall transaction volume, it also contributes to end-of-day price declines, pushing the market index downward even as cash turnover rises.

Profit-Takers and Market Manipulators

Market insiders suggest that experienced traders are maneuvering carefully through the volatility, exploiting dividend announcements to extract profit through netting. At the same time, some analysts suspect the presence of an influential syndicate manipulating prices for self-gain, contributing to instability and investor uncertainty.

Experts have therefore urged caution among retail investors, advising them to research company fundamentals rather than chase dividend declarations blindly. “A dividend alone doesn’t reflect a company’s financial health,” one market analyst commented. “Investors must assess long-term sustainability and profitability before making moves.”

Market Snapshot – Tuesday, October 28, 2025

The DSEX Index fell 72 points, closing at 5,084.12.
The Shariah Index (DSES) dropped 54 points to 1,071.15, while the DS-30 Index—representing blue-chip companies—rose 4.35 points to 1,973.55.
Out of 399 traded companies, prices rose for 134, fell for 199, and remained unchanged for 66.

Despite the fall in indices, total turnover surged to Tk 394.18 crore, up from Tk 377.01 crore the previous day—bolstering the theory that netting-based short-term profit-taking is driving higher cash flow.

Meanwhile, the Chattogram Stock Exchange mirrored this trend. The CASPI Index dropped 85.05 points, closing at 14,370.99, though turnover nearly doubled to Tk 35.58 crore from Tk 17.71 crore a day earlier.

The Bottom Line

As Bangladesh’s capital markets continue to navigate this paradoxical “dividend season downturn,” experts emphasize that prudent investing—not speculative trading—remains the key to resilience.

In a market where even dividends can’t lift sentiment, discipline may be the only strategy that pays.