introduce a new interest rate system after a pause of three years in the monetary policy scheduled to be unveiled tomorrow (Sunday).As the existing interest rate cap is set to go from the next month, there is a likelihood of increased rates for fixed deposit receipts. This development has sparked fear among investors, as it may potentially lead to a reduction in fund flow towards the stock market, said a stockbroker.As some stock market funds may divert to the money market, the already liquidity-strained stock market is expected to shrink further, he pointed out.This week, sellers dominated the trading floor in a bid to protect their investment and minimise their losses in this ailing market as confidence crisis still prevails, market analysts said.After weeks of dominating the gainers chart and contributing to the rise of the prime index, life insurance stocks experienced losses due to the downturn in the market movement.All the top 10 losers were insurance companies, including seven life insurers. The life insurance sector tumbled 14 per cent due to selling pressure.Of the five trading days this week, the first four sessions suffered huge losses while the last one managed to reverse the trend.DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), slid 72.82 points or 1.15 per cent to settle the week at 6,280, after the previous week s slight correction.The International Leasing Securities said the anticipation of the hike of the policy rates in the upcoming monetary policy creates fear among the investors as the monetary initiative may further reduce the fund flow to the stock market.On top of that, the adjustments of the June-closing stocks as well as the sell pressure ahead of Eid-ul-Azha contributed to the significant fall in the index, said the stockbroker.Also, some are closely eyeing on the draft income tax bill 2023 that was placed in parliament on June 8 before making any decision on fresh investment in the market.The DS30 Index, which consists of blue-chip companies, shed 10.40 points to 2,182 and the DSES index, which represents Shariah-based companies, dropped 13.25 points to 1,365.Investors participation in the market also fell sharply, with a single-day turnover hitting a two-month low in the last session of the week, bringing the total turnover to Tk 38.70 billion, down from Tk 54.45 billion in the week before.The average daily turnover stood at Tk 7.74 billion, down 29 per cent from the previous week s daily average turnover of Tk 10.90 billion.This week, sellers dominated the DSE trading floor, as out of 390 issues traded, 141 saw price erosion, 42 witnessed price surges while 207 issues remained unchanged.Meghna Life Insurance became the most-traded stocks, with shares worth Tk 1.90 billion changing hands, followed by Navana Pharma, Sea Pearl Beach Resorts, Sonali Life Insurance and Fareast Islami Life Insurance.Investors were mostly active in the life insurance sector, capturing 24.6 per cent of the week s total turnover, followed by the food sector with (10 per cent) and pharmaceutical (9.9 per cent).Khulna Printing and Packaging was the week s top gainer, soaring 30.53 per cent while Meghna Life Insurance was the worst loser, shedding 24 per cent.The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) also suffered a big loss with its All Share Price Index (CASPI) shedding 202 points to settle at 18,560 and the Selective Categories Index (CSCX) losing 119 points to close at 11,102.The port city s bourse traded 27.95 million shares and mutual fund units with turnover value of Tk 1.01 billion during the week.