Sri Lanka shares gain for third straight session to 1-wk high; market heavyweights lead
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka stocks gained on Monday (22) for the third straight session to end at one-week high, pushed up by index heavy weights which fell on profit taking last week, dealers said.
The main All Share Price Index (ASPI) rose 1.25% or 111.84 points to 9,087.59, on Monday, its highest since August 15.
“Investors have moved into liquid shares as there’s profit taking in the energy and plantation sector counters after those counters gained for over two-weeks,” a market analyst said.
Analysts said the buying interest in energy sector and plantation-related stocks still continuing after investors have shifted from top liquid shares, analysts said.
The market generated 3.14 billion rupees in turnover, equal to this year’s average daily turnover of 3.13 billion rupees.
Sri Lanka has already declared sovereign debt default on April 12 this year and failed to pay its first sovereign debt in May amid a deepening economic crisis which later turned into a political crisis and led to a change in the president, cabinet, and government.
The more liquid S&P SL20 index ended 1.48% or 43.75 points up at 3,007.70
Sri Lanka is facing its worst fuel and economic crisis in its post-independence era and the economy is expected to contract more than 8 percent this year.
The main ASPI gained 17.5 percent in August so far after gaining 5.3 percent in July. It lost 9.3 percent in June, 23 percent in April, and 14.5 percent in March.
The market index has lost 25.6 percent so far this year after being one of the world’s best stock markets with an 80 percent return last year when large volumes of money were printed.
Net foreign inflow was 66 million rupees on Friday, but the total net foreign outflow so far this year is 984 billion rupees.
Investors are also concerned over the steep fall of the rupee from 203 to 370 levels so far in 2022.
Expolanka pushed the index up, closing 6.7 percent firmer at 231.2 rupees a share.
LOLC closed 5.2 percent up at 618.2 rupees a share, and Aitken Spence gained 5 percent to 119.7 rupees. (Colombo/Aug22/2022)
