Sri Lankan shares ended marginally higher on Friday, clocking their seventh straight weekly gain, helped by gains in heavyweight industrial stocks.

The CSE All-Share index ended 0.08% higher at 13,371.61. For the week, the index added 0.25%.

Conglomerate Expolanka Holdings Plc and healthcare and hospital services provider Asiri Hospital Holdings Plc were the top boosts to the index, rising 2.5% and 10.3%, respectively.

The island nation is suffering its worst financial crisis in decades amidst dwindling reserves, the threat of default and soaring inflation.

Sri Lanka's national consumer price inflation rose 14% year-over-year in December 2021 versus a 11.1% rise in November, data from the statistics department on Friday showed.

Sri Lankan shares down as central bank rate hike fails to cheer investors

On Thursday, the central bank raised interest rates as it shifts its focus to controlling inflation, curbing imports and attracting foreign capital as it looks to build reserves.

Foreign investors were net sellers in the equity market, offloading shares worth 119.2 million rupees ($590,099.01), exchange data showed.

The equity market's turnover was 4.95 billion rupees.

Trading volume fell to 154.9 million shares from 255.6 million shares in the previous session.

Sri Lanka has reported 599,363 total coronavirus cases and 15,255 deaths as of Thursday, data from the country's health bureau showed.

About 63.64% of Sri Lanka's population has been fully vaccinated, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.