News & market updates

Colombo Stock Exchange ASPI rose 0.30% to 13,228 on turnover of Rs2.3bn, led by retail buying in food, beverage & tobacco and renewed interest in construction. Notable movers included gains in Lion Brewery, Ceylon Cold Stores, Distilleries, Access Engineering and Central Finance, while Sierra Cables fell; net foreign outflow was Rs379mn.

Central Finance PLC topped K Seeds Investments' Q2 2023/24 ranking, placing first among 27 listed finance companies in Category 1 (asset base > Rs.100 billion). The ranking used ten equally weighted KPIs calculated from interim Colombo Stock Exchange financial statements.

Colombo Stock Exchange opened November with Rs.5.0 billion turnover as ASPI rose 0.7% to 12,864. Diversified financials led turnover (52%) and an off-board crossing saw CDB's 12.7% stake trade at Rs.247.50; several banks and mid/small caps (HNB, PABC, DFCC) saw heavy activity or gains.

Colombo stock market turnover hit an 8-month high of Rs. 7 billion, led by Harischandra Mills (Rs.1bn), NDB (Rs.663m), Hayleys (Rs.534m), DFCC (Rs.340m) and PABC (Rs.339m); off-board trades transferred 13.9% of Harischandra and 10.7% of Swadeshi.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: ASPI +0.20% (24.98 pts) at 12,770 and S&P SL20 +0.22% at 3,864, with turnover Rs7 billion. A crossing on Harischandra Mills contributed over a billion to turnover, a Swadeshi Industrial Works crossing involved HNWIs, and top ASPI contributors included Melstacorp, NDB, Central Finance and Hayleys.

Sri Lanka's central bank defended open market operations after standing-window deposits rose to Rs200 billion by Oct 29, saying injections averted a spike in interest rates; critics warn the injections are inflationary and risk future balance-of-payments and reserve problems.

Colombo Stock Exchange recorded Rs.4.7bn turnover as the S&P SL20 rose 1% and the ASPI gained 0.35%. HNB (Rs.1.39bn), Sampath (Rs.1bn) and JKH (Rs.442mn) led turnover; HNB and Sampath fell while Commercial Bank, John Keells, DFCC, CTC and Central Finance posted gains.

Colombo Stock Exchange ended the week in green: ASPI rose 0.35% to 12,517 and turnover was Rs4.7bn, with Sampath Bank and Hatton National Bank contributing over Rs1bn and Rs1.3bn respectively. Net foreign outflow was Rs186m and Lion Brewery announced a Rs17.3/share dividend.

Colombo market closed marginally higher as the ASPI rose 57 points to 12,357 on turnover of Rs.2.3bn and a net foreign inflow of Rs.118.1m. Banking-led buying (35% turnover) and gains in Commercial Bank, Sampath Bank, NDB and Central Finance drove the session, with Hayleys and Hemas also up.

A TW Corporate seminar featuring former MBSL executives urged lenders to adopt innovative credit evaluation and creative debt restructuring to reduce credit risk, improve monitoring and optimise balance sheets.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed up: ASPI +0.47% to 12,357 and S&P SL20 +0.95% to 3,663, with turnover Rs 2.3bn. Top turnover stocks included John Keells (JKH 203.00), Sampath (84.00), Commercial Bank (110.25), Hayleys (103.00) and Hemas (81.00); net foreign inflow was Rs 118m.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed mixed: ASPI fell 0.08% to 12,300 while S&P SL20 rose 0.11% to 3,628, with turnover Rs1.9bn and a net foreign inflow of Rs37m. Top contributors included John Keells, Lion Brewery, Sampath Bank, HNB and Central Finance.

ASPI closed down 4 points at 12,309 while S&P SL20 rose 2 points, with turnover of Rs.1.5 billion and foreign investors net selling Rs.109.4 million. ACL, UAL and HELA were among gainers while CFIN, LMF, LIOC, HAYL, RCL and SPEN were notable losers; Capital Goods led turnover.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed mixed: ASPI fell 0.03% to 12,309 while the S&P SL20 rose 0.05% to 3,624, with turnover of 1.4 billion and net foreign outflow of 109 million rupees. Top gainers included Sampath Bank, ACL Cables and Hemas; laggards included Hayleys, Central Finance, Royal Ceramics and Aitken Spence, and Lanka IOC reported a 50% drop in Sept quarter profit to 2,525 million rupees.

The ASPI closed the week up 0.2% at 12,313 (23-point gain) while the S&P SL20 fell 0.5%, with market turnover averaging Rs. 1.75 billion. Diversified financials led turnover and there was positive investor interest in plantation names (BALA, AGPL), LB Finance, Lankem, C T Holdings, Central Finance, HNB and Digital Mobility (PKME).

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: All Share Index +0.18% to 12,313 and S&P SL20 +0.26% to 3,622, with turnover Rs1.9bn. Renewed investor interest in leasing/finance on a possible vehicle import ban reversal and positive results/crossings at L B Finance and CDB; net foreign outflow Rs87mn.

Colombo market rose as ASPI gained 0.9% (111 points) to 12,165, a three-month high, with turnover of Rs.2.77 bn led by banking stocks; S&P SL20 rose 1.3% and top contributors included CTHR, SAMP, HNB, JKH and COMB.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: ASPI rose 0.92% to 12,164 and S&P SL20 gained 1.34% to 3,590, led by banking stocks which accounted for Rs 1.4bn of turnover; top contributors included C T Holdings, Sampath Bank, John Keells and Commercial Bank.

Colombo's ASPI fell 4 points to 11,930 as the market stayed bearish, with S&P SL20 down 26 points (0.7%), turnover Rs.1.3bn and net foreign outflow of Rs.18m. Major negatives were HNB, SAMP, COMB, HAYL and JKH while CINS and PKME (PickMe) were among gainers; Commercial Credit and Lankem also rose.

Anura Kumara Dissanayake's 21 Sept. presidential win propelled the Colombo bourse—ASPI rose ~10% and S&P SL20 ~13% since the victory, returning indices to double-digit YTD gains. Turnover jumped to Rs.2.6bn with banks and capital goods leading; JKH, COMB, NDB, CFIN, SAMP and HNB were key positives while UML, MARA and BERU fell.

Central Bank Governor said a sovereign ISB bond exchange could occur in 6–8 weeks if the government proceeds with the existing DSA and completes a comparability assessment. He said an agreement in principle exists with ISB holders, local bondholders and the ADB, with local banks to receive new bonds.

Intellect Design Arena launched eMACH.ai in Sri Lanka — a composable open-finance platform offering 329 microservices, 535 events and over 1,757 APIs to help banks design future-ready technology. Named local clients include HDFC Sri Lanka, Cargills Bank, Central Finance, CDB, Seylan Bank and Union Bank of Colombo.

Intellect Design Arena launched eMACH.ai in Sri Lanka — a composable open-finance platform with 329 microservices, 535 events and over 1,757 APIs — and cited local customers including HDFC, Cargills Bank, Central Finance, Seylan Bank and Union Bank as users/partners.

K Seeds Investments ranked L B Finance PLC and Central Finance Company PLC as the top-performing Category 1 (asset base > Rs.100 billion) finance companies for Q1 2024/25. The ranking used 10 equally weighted KPIs from interim Colombo Stock Exchange financials, including ROE, NIM, NPLs and loan growth.

K Seeds Investments ranked L B Finance PLC and Central Finance Company PLC as the top performers in Category 1 (asset base > Rs.100bn) among 27 listed finance companies for Q1 2024/25, based on ten equally weighted KPIs. The report noted sector stabilisation supported by lower borrowing costs, a stable rupee and rising loan demand.

Colombo market slid as the S&P SL20 fell 1.26% and the ASPI dropped 0.95% on turnover of Rs.513.6m, led by losses in banks and blue chips including John Keells, Melstacorp, Central Finance, Commercial Bank and Ceylon Cold Stores.

The Colombo bourse's five-day winning streak ended with a 0.2% drop on Friday, but the week closed with the S&P SL20 up 2.4% and the ASPI up 1.8% and average daily turnover of Rs. 740m. Top negative contributors were C T Holdings, John Keells, DFCC, Central Finance and Lanka IOC, while Access Engineering, Renuka and Melstacorp gained.

ASPI fell 41 points to 12,254 as the Colombo market remained lacklustre with weak turnover and banking-led declines. Sampath Bank saw buying interest and rose to Rs.74.50, John Keells gained modestly, while Central Finance and Hayleys Fabric recorded price falls.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed down: ASPI fell 0.36% to 11,253 and S&P SL20 fell 0.43% to 3,210, with turnover Rs629mn. Top contributors included Sampath (up after stellar interim results and a Rs10bn debenture announcement), DFCC and SMB Finance, while several banks including HNB, NDB and Commercial Bank weighed on the index; net foreign inflow was Rs19mn.

CSE turnover fell to Rs. 320 million — the lowest since May 2020 — as indices closed flat and investors remained cautious amid political uncertainty. Ceylinco (CINS) was the main positive contributor while Central Finance, John Keells, CIC, NDB and Browns featured among top turnover names.