Monthly Business Review- February 2019

Bright picture for Capital Market in 2019

The Market Capitalization (Mcap) /GDP ratio lowered to 17% in 2018 from 24% in 2014, whereas the peer countries mostly picked up for peer countries. One potential reason for this phenomenon is lack of listing of large corporates in the market. However, 2018 witnessed a number of developments in the form of partnerships and regulations. The strategic partnership between DSE and a Chinese consortium of Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock exchanges is expected to contribute in capital market improvement. BSEC approved the draft Qualified Investor Offer by Small Capital Companies Rules, 2018 that is expected to increase efficiency of the market by providing a separate market for small cap companies.

Future prospect of the capital market in 2019 looks bright as government expects GDP growth to be at 7.8% and inflation at 5.6%. Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) and UN predicted Bangladesh to be one of the fastest growing economy. Provided that interest rates remain under control and liquidity conditions improve, the market is expected to perform better. Stable political environment will attract foreign investment and improvement of exports and remittance can help ease pressure on currency.