Stock market closes on the up but ends 2015 with 5.5% dip

Friday, 1 January 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Sri Lanka’s main share index fell 5.5% this year, but ended firmer at a more than one-month high on Thursday in thin trading due to the holiday and investors awaiting the impact of a hike in commercial banks’ statutory reserve ratio (SRR).

Sri Lanka’s Central Bank on Wednesday raised the SRR by 150 basis points to 7.50%, to stabilise a rupee hovering near record lows and slow private sector credit growth.

The main stock index recouped early losses to end 0.35% firmer at 6,894.50, its highest close since 30 November.

The index fell 5.5% in 2015, Thomson Reuters data showed. In terms of U.S. dollar value, Sri Lanka’s market capitalisation fell 13.9%, still performing better than the other stock index in Asia like Malaysia, Thailand , Indonesia and Singapore.

Stockbrokers said many investors are on year-end leave and some are waiting to see the impact of the Central Bank ‘s first step in monetary tightening.

Foreign investors bought a net Rs. 49.1 million ($340,617) worth of equities, but the market saw a net foreign outflow of Rs. 4.43 billion in 2015, compared to a net foreign inflow of Rs. 22.07 billion last year.

Turnover stood at Rs. 326.4 million, less than a third of this year’s daily average of Rs. 1.06 billion. Last year’s daily average was Rs. 1.42 billion.

Diversified conglomerate Aitken Spence, which led the overall index gain, rose 5.1%, while development lender DFCC Bank gained 3.3%.

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.