Bourse remains on the up; net foreign inflow tops Rs. 1.2 b
Friday, 24 January 2014 01:01
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Reuters: Shares edged up on Thursday to hit their highest in more than five months on continued foreign inflows on positive sentiment after an investor roadshow in Singapore earlier this week and low interest rates.
The main stock index rose 0.22%, or 13.47 points, to 6,226.14, its highest close since 16 August.
Officials from the Colombo Stock Exchange and the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with some top company officials and brokers, were in Singapore for a roadshow on Monday to attract more foreign funds.
Shares in top listed lender Commercial Bank of Ceylon rose 1.63% to 130.60 rupees while Cargills (Ceylon) PLC rose 3.52% to Rs. 150.10.
Cargills on Wednesday in a disclosure to the Stock Exchange said the Central Bank had granted it a licence to start commercial banking operations in its Cargills Bank Ltd.
The market has gained 4.7% in the last 11 sessions, which analysts attributed to the Central Bank’s interest rate cut on 2 January and the recent fall in T-bill yields.
The index has been in an overbought region since 7 January, Thomson Reuters data showed. It has risen 5.3% so far this year following a 4.8% gain in 2013, after having fallen in the previous two years.
The day’s turnover was Rs. 1.9 billion ($ 14.53 million), more than last year’s daily average of about Rs. 828.4 million.
Foreign investors were net buyers of Rs. 236.7 million worth of shares, extending the year-to-date net inflow to Rs. 1.21 billion. They had bought Rs. 22.88 billion of stocks last year.
