Bourse ends flat; turnover up on foreign buying

Thursday, 5 June 2014 01:16 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Shares hovered near their lowest close in more than three weeks and ended little changed on Wednesday, while turnover rose on buying from foreign investors and expectation that interest rates would come down further, brokers said. The main stock index ended 0.04 points up at 6,286.06. On Friday, it had closed at its lowest level since 7 May. Turnover was Rs. 1.02 billion ($ 7.82 million) on Wednesday, the highest since 30 May and slightly more than this year’s daily average of Rs. 1 billion. The Bourse saw a net foreign inflow for a fifth straight session. Foreign investors bought Rs. 479.7 million worth of shares, extending the year-to-date net foreign inflows to Rs. 3.37 billion. Analysts said the market expects a further fall in interest rates after Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal told Reuters on Friday that the Central Bank is creating room to cut interest rates further. Cabraal signalled “a lot a space being created for some more dovish action”. Stockbrokers expect the market to gain in the near future due to lower interest rates after the Central Bank kept key rates at multi-year lows in May for the fourth straight month, as expected. Shares of Dialog Axiata PLC rose 1.02% to Rs. 9.90. Conglomerate John Keells Holdings PLC, which accounted for 50.57% of the day’s turnover, closed flat at Rs. 235.

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