BENGALURU: Sri Lankan shares closed higher on Thursday, after the island nation cut its key interest rates for the second straight month.
The CSE All Share index settled up 0.18% at 10,194.47, gaining for a fourth straight session.
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) on Thursday cut its standing deposit facility rate (SDFR) and standing lending facility rate (SLFR) to 11% and 12%, respectively, from 13% and 14% previously, in line with analysts’ expectations. The 200 basis point (bps) cut followed a 250 bps reduction in June.
Governor P. Nandalal Weerasinghe said the bank would not hesitate to take measures against financial institutions if the normal interest rate structure is not restored soon.
Sri Lanka Telecom PLC and LOLC Holdings PLC were the top gainers on the CSE All Share, rising 5.95% and 2.1%, respectively.
Trading volume on the CSE All Share index fell to 120.1 million shares from 172.8 million shares in the previous session.
The equity market’s turnover fell to 3.29 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($10.6 million) from 4.95 billion rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.
Foreign investors were net buyers, purchasing stocks worth 153.9 million rupees, while domestic investors were net sellers, offloading 3.18 billion rupees of shares, the data showed.
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