Sri Lankan shares edge lower as utilities, consumer discretionary stocks weigh

Sri Lankan shares closed lower on Tuesday as losses in utilities and consumer discretionary stocks outweighed gains in communication services and consumer staples.

The CSE All Share index settled down 0.50% at 21,424.99, falling for the second straight session.

Renuka City Hotels PLC and PMF Finance PLC were the top percentage losers on the CSE All Share index, falling 7.7% and 7.3%, respectively.

Trading volume on the CSE All Share index fell to 48.7 million shares from 79.7 million in the previous session.

The equity market’s turnover rose to 1.09 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($3.24 million) from 1.04 billion rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.

Foreign investors were net sellers, offloading stocks worth 142.9 million rupees, while domestic investors were net buyers, purchasing shares worth 1.07 billion rupees, the data showed.