Sri Lankan shares closed lower on Monday, snapping three straight sessions of gains, as President Ranil Wickremesinghe announced 2023 budget aimed at clinching an IMF deal.
At the close of trade, the CSE All-Share index fell 0.66% to 8,363.29, weighed down by losses in financial and industrial stocks. The index, which closed 1.16% higher on Friday, shed 0.86% last week.
The crisis-hit Sri Lankan economy can turn around by the end of 2023 if budget policies, which are not limited to the International Monetary Fund’s recommendations, are followed, Wickremesinghe said on Monday.
The government plans to reduce debt to less than 100% of GDP over the medium term and achieve economic growth of around 7%-8%.
Wickremesinghe laid down several medium-term targets for the government: increasing international trade as a percentage of GDP by more than 100%, annual growth of $3 billion from new exports over the next 10 years as well as attracting $3 billion in foreign direct investment over the same period.
Sri Lankan shares end higher ahead of 2023 budget
On the CSE All-Share index on Monday, conglomerates Expolanka Holdings PLC and LOLC Holdings Plc were the top drags, falling 3.4% and 3.1%, respectively.
Trading volume on the CSE All-Share index rose to 43.5 million shares from about 36.6 million in the previous session.
The equity market’s turnover was 941.1 million Sri Lankan rupees ($2.59 million) compared with 862 million rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.
Foreign investors were net sellers in the equity market, offloading stocks worth 62.8 million rupees of shares, while domestic investors were net buyers, purchasing shares worth 901.8 million rupees, data showed.
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