Stock market enjoys over 2% weekly gains

REUTERS: Shares closed higher yesterday, helped by financial stocks, and ended the holiday-shortened week with gains of over 2%.

The CSE All-Share index climbed 0.85% to close at 8,136.76. For the week, with only three trading days, the index added 2.13%.

Turnover was Rs. 5.67 billion and trading volume on the exchange fell to 285.8 million shares from 310.2 million in the previous session.

Finance and leasing company LOLC Development Finance PLC and conglomerate LOLC Holdings were the top boosts to the index, rising 25% and 2.9%, respectively.

Sri Lanka’s national consumer price inflation rose 6.1% year-on-year in June vs. a similar rise a month ago, according to data from the country’s statistics department.

Foreign investors were net sellers in the equity market, offloading shares worth Rs. 573.5 million.