Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
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The Colombo stock market gathered further momentum with both indices up by over 1% and healthy turnover.
The All Share Price Index (ASPI) gained by 1.4% or 102 points and the S&P SL20 gained by 1.6% or over 47 points.
Turnover was Rs. 3.9 billion, dominated by deals on Hatton National Bank (HNB), Browns Investments, Expolanka Holdings, Dipped Products and Sampath Bank, according to SC Securities.
First Capital said the Bourse successfully maintained its upward trajectory for the sixth consecutive session as the ASPI spiked over 100 points to a five-week high.
“Index experienced a rapid upward movement during the early hours of trading with slight volatility, followed by a sideways movement during mid-day and illustrated a significant upward push towards the latter part of the session. The market closed at 7,413, gaining 102 points,” First Capital said.
It added that banks led the turnover for the session, closely followed by the Capital Goods and Material sectors making a joint contribution of 64%. Parcel trades accounted for 15% of the turnover.
Asia Securities said the market continued its positive momentum for a fifth consecutive session.
“The indices trended upwards throughout the day, with the S&P SL20 index surpassing the 3,000-level. Turnover remained strong on active retail and HNI participation, while foreign selling in JKH and SAMP was absorbed by local investors,” Asia added.
NDB Equities said the ASPI closed in green as a result of price gains in counters such as LOLC Holdings, Browns Investments and Expolanka Holdings.
It said high net worth and institutional investor participation was noted in HNB and Expolanka Holdings. Mixed interest was observed in Dipped Products and Sampath Bank, whilst retail interest was noted in Browns Investment and Tokyo Cement Company.
The Banking sector was the top contributor to the market turnover (due to HNB and Sampath Bank), whilst the sector index gained 1.41%. The share price of HNB increased by Rs. 2.00 (1.54%) to close at Rs. 132.25. The share price of Sampath Bank appreciated by Rs. 1.90 (3.53%), closing at Rs. 55.80, whilst foreign holdings decreased by 2,715,358 shares.
Browns Investments, Expolanka Holdings and Dipped Products were also included amongst the top turnover contributors. The share price of Browns Investments gained Rs. 0.30 (5.36%) to close at Rs. 5.90. The share price of Expolanka Holdings moved up by Rs. 1.80 (3.80%) to close at Rs. 49.20. The share price of Dipped Products recorded a gain of Rs. 1.60 (2.90%) to close at Rs. 56.80.
Separately, Ceylon Grain Elevators and Three Acre Farms announced their final dividends of Rs. 4.50 and Rs. 5.50 per share respectively.
Net foreign selling amounted to Rs. 315 million, pushing the year-to-date (YTD) net foreign outflow to over Rs. 19 billion.
Estimated net foreign buying topped in VONE at Rs. 10.8 million and net foreign selling topped in SAMP at Rs. 151.5 million.
