ASPI steady compared to emerging, frontier market indices: CSE

Wednesday, 30 May 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) said yesterday that its benchmark All Share Price Index (ASPI) has been steady when compared with emerging and frontier market indices.

It said CSE’s ASPI has indicated relative stability in 2018 amid a noteworthy overall decline in frontier and emerging markets.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index, which captures large and mid-cap representation across 24 Emerging Markets countries, has declined in 2018 by 1.88%, while the MSCI Frontier Markets Index, which captures large and mid-cap representation across 29 Frontier Markets countries, has declined by 8.37%, indicating the downturn markets have faced in 2018.

The CSE ASPI is presently in positive territory for 2018, with a positive YTD return of 1.32%. The ASPI has remained positive during a period where certain main indices in other Asian markets have indicated negative returns.

“A feature of the Sri Lankan Stock Market has been the fact that our market is largely not sensitive to developments in global markets, which has often worked to our advantage, especially when attracting fund allocations by frontier market-focused foreign portfolio investors, as it gives them an opportunity to diversify,” said CSE Head of Market Development Niroshan Wijesundere.

“This unique feature and attractive valuations the market offers at present with a market P/E valuation of 10.83, which is significantly lower than our regional peers, is likely to further capture the attention of portfolio investors who are on the lookout for diversification opportunities,” Wijesundere added.