ECONOMYNEXT – The Colombo Stock Exchange closed up on Thursday, CSE data showed.
The All Share Price Index was up 0.52 percent, or 56.06 points, at 10,826.60.
The S&P SL20 was up 0.58 percent, or 17.71 points, at 3,052.16.
Turnover crossed the 1 billion mark after a week.
Analysts said interest in the market was returning possibly due to investors believing that share prices had bottomed out and will peak again.
There was some renewed buying interest in the banking sector, with National Development Bank (up 5.19 percent), Commercial Bank (up 0.84), Sampath Bank (up 0.45 percent) and DFCC (up 1.69 percent) seeing gains in the day.
Dollar-earning companies like Hayleys Plc (up 2.99 percent), Expolanka Holdings Plc (up 2.53 percent), and Hemas Holdings Plc (up 3.35 percent) attracted investor interest during the day’s trading.
Meanwhile, some hotel sector shares showed declines in share prices, after the government announced that tourism figures for October were marginally down and targets were not met.
These included Aitken Spence Plc (down 2.15 percent) and Hunas Holdings Plc (down 8.10 percent),
Asian Hotels and Properties Plc (down 2.34 percent), but also Melstacorp Plc which has both beverages and hospitalities under it (down 1.01 percent) and Lion Brewery (Ceylon) Plc (down 1.53 percent).
There was a net foreign outflow of 48 million in the day’s trading. (Colombo/Nov 2/2023)