Stock market suffers Rs. 188 b loss in value; highest intraday dip in over two years

Thursday, 6 February 2025 04:59 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Colombo stock market saw Rs. 188 billion in value wiped off, with the benchmark index losing over 500 points, as investors were on a selling spree in a U-turn of sentiments.

The ASPI plunged by 500 points or 3% whilst the active S&P SL20 by 3.3%. The latter runs the risk of turning negative year to date for the first time.

The market capitalisation declined by Rs. 188 billion and fell below the Rs. 6 trillion mark to close at Rs. 5.86 trillion.

Turnover was Rs. 6.35 billion involving 241.3 million shares.

Some analysts said investors took profit after a record January, which saw the market gain by over 7%. Others said a few policy missteps as well as conflicting remarks dampened investor sentiments.

First Capital said the market suffered the highest intraday loss since 25 April 2022, where the ASPI plunged by over 600 points.

The number of positive contributors remained at a mere 16, with CINS and CARG demonstrating worthwhile contributions. The Banking sector exerted noteworthy adverse pressure on the ASPI, with four out of the five top negative contributors belonging to this segment. Consequently, HNB, COMB, MELS, SAMP, and NDB emerged as the top negative contributors to the ASPI.

Market turnover denoted a recovery from Rs. 3.0 billion registered in the previous trading session. However, this was still lower than the monthly average of Rs. 6.8 billion.

The Insurance segment led turnover, contributing 22%. This was followed by the Capital Goods, and Food, Beverage and Tobacco sectors, which contributed 35.3%.

While investor participation experienced little downturn, negative sentiment dominated the outcome of the session. Furthermore, foreign investors emerged as net sellers throughout today’s session, registering a net outflow of Rs. 344 million.

NDB Securities said high net worth and institutional investor participation was noted in Ceylinco Holdings, Teejay Lanka, and Ceylon Cold Stores. Mixed interest was observed in Industrial Asphalts, SMB Leasing, and Agarapatana Plantations, whilst retail interest was noted in Browns Investments, John Keells Holdings, and Hatton National Bank.

The Insurance sector was the top contributor to the market turnover (due to Ceylinco Holdings) whilst the sector index gained 1.32%. The share price of Ceylinco Holdings increased by Rs. 243.25 (7.85%) to close at Rs. 3,342.25.

The Capital Goods sector was the second highest contributor to the market turnover (due to John Keells Holdings) whilst the sector index decreased by 3.28%. The share price of John Keells Holdings moved down by Rs. 0.60 to Rs. 22.

Browns Investments, Teejay Lanka, and Hatton National Bank were also included amongst the top turnover contributors. The share price of Browns Investments lost Rs. 0.40 to Rs. 8.50. The share price of Teejay Lanka recorded a loss of Rs. 1.20 to Rs. 54.80. The share price of Hatton National Bank declined by Rs. 10.50 (3.05%) to Rs. 334.