Sri Lankan shares closed higher on Friday, lifted by gains in communication services and consumer staples stocks, while investors braced for the central bank policy rate decision due later in the day.
The CSE All-Share index rose 1.2% to 9,444.92. The index had also closed 1.2% higher on Thursday.
Sri Lanka’s central bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged for a fourth-straight time as the crisis-hit country strives to keep a cap on inflation while waiting for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.
Broadband services provider Sri Lanka Telecom Plc and liquor producer Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka Plc were the biggest boosts to the index, rising 5% and 8.70%, respectively.
Trading volume rose to 93.6 million shares from 78.4 million in the previous session.
The IMF on Thursday said Sri Lanka’s recent tax rises would help creditors regain confidence as it looks to secure a bailout. It also cautioned that efforts to increase tax revenues should be pursued in a growth-friendly manner while protecting the poor.
The country’s state minister of finance said this week Sri Lanka was hoping to return to growth in 2024.
The equity market’s turnover rose to 2.86 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($8.51 million), compared with 1.45 billion rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.
Foreign investors were net buyers in the equity market, purchasing stocks worth 93.4 million rupees, while domestic investors were net sellers, selling shares worth 2.78 billion rupees, data showed.
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