Dhaka, Jan. 2 -- After a challenging year, the stock market entered the New Year on high hopes, as bargain hunters placed fresh bets on lucrative stocks on Thursday amid renewed optimism.

Market analysts said investors' optimism over evolving political developments offered some relief to the broadly subdued market sentiment, with hopes for political stability and macroeconomic recovery after the parliamentary election.

Many investors left the market last year, frustrated by political uncertainty, while institutional investors were mostly inactive, leading to price erosion in many well-performing stocks.

Due to massive price erosion, most blue-chip stocks, including much-preferred multinationals, fell to their historical lows, which ins...