News & market updates

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher with banks leading gains after Sri Lanka reached a deal to restructure defaulted sovereign bonds allowing local banks to swap 70% of ISBs into dollar bonds with a 10% haircut and convert the remaining 30% into rupee securities.

Colombo market closed higher as the S&P SL20 rose 0.8% and the ASPI gained 0.5% with turnover of Rs. 1.22bn, led by the banking sector which contributed 45% of turnover and saw its sector index up 1.17%. Top positive contributors included Commercial Bank, Melstacorp, NDB, Browns Investments and John Keells; HNB, COMB, NTB and PABC recorded gains while Sampath slipped.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: All Share Index +0.54% to 10,884 and S&P SL20 +0.81% to 3,061, led by bank stocks which generated Rs5,514mn of turnover. Total turnover was Rs1.2bn with a net foreign outflow of Rs38.96mn; top turnover names included HNB, Commercial Bank, Sampath and Nations Trust.

ASPI rose 1.34% to 10,826 and the S&P SL20 gained nearly 2% as banking counters led gains and accounted for 46% of turnover; top contributors included Sampath Bank, Hatton National Bank, John Keells, Aitken Spence and Hayleys.

ASPI closed at 10,683, up 116 points (1.1%) on the day, though ASPI and S&P SL20 fell 0.9% and 1.1% for the week. Banking and capital-goods counters led gains, turnover was Rs.1.2bn and foreign investors were net buyers of Rs.80.4m.

ASPI slipped 0.07% to 10,567 while the S&P SL20 rose 0.06%, with turnover at Rs.1.14bn led by the banking sector (63%); key movers included declines in Commercial Bank, HNB, Sampath Bank, John Keells and Ceylinco, while Dipped Products saw mixed interest.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed down: the All Share Index fell 0.07% to 10,567 while the S&P SL20 rose 0.06% to 2,925, turnover was LKR 1.1 billion and there was a net foreign inflow of LKR 13.49 million; banks (Commercial Bank, HNB, Sampath) led turnover.

The ASPI fell 0.65% to 10,571, taking its YTD return to -0.78%. Declines in Commercial Bank, John Keells, Sampath and HNB led the drop; turnover was Rs.1bn (up 46.9% vs monthly average) and foreign investors were net buyers of Rs.131.1m.

ASPI fell 0.65% to 10,571, pushing its YTD return to -0.78% — the first YTD negative for 2024. Banking and blue-chip counters (Commercial Bank, John Keells, Sampath, HNB, DFCC) led declines; turnover was Rs.1bn (up 46.9% vs monthly avg) and foreigners net bought Rs.131.1m.

Colombo market fell as S&P SL20 dropped 1.77% and ASPI declined 1% with turnover of Rs. 1.23 billion and net foreign inflow of Rs. 44.8 million. Commercial Bank, Hatton National Bank, Ceylon Tobacco Company, Sampath Bank and Royal Ceramics were the top negative contributors.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed lower: All Share Index down 0.23% to 10,775 and S&P SL20 down 0.46% to 3,021, turnover 449 million and net foreign outflow of 43.06 million.

ASPI fell 0.3% to close at 10,801 as turnover was Rs.1.5 billion; indices reversed gains after a short-lived rebound. Melstacorp, Hemas, DFCC, LOLC and John Keells were among the top negative contributors while Hatton National Bank gained and Commercial Bank was flat.

Colombo market rebounded, ending a 12-day losing run as the ASPI rose 1.5% (164 points) with turnover of Rs. 1.46bn; banking counters and index heavyweights such as Commercial Bank, Sampath Bank, Melstacorp, CTC and Hayleys were top contributors.

Colombo bourse continued its negative run as election uncertainty pushed both indices down over 0.4%, with market capitalisation at Rs. 4.23 trillion (0.4% YTD decline) and turnover of Rs. 1.1 billion. Notable moves: CTC down Rs.46.50 to Rs.1,163.50, Commercial Bank down Rs.1 to Rs.83.70, HNB down Rs.1.50 to Rs.163.50 and JKH down 50c to Rs.167; retail interest seen in Browns Investments and LOLC Finance.

LTL Holdings has launched an IPO on the CSE of up to 1,379,310,400 new shares at LKR 14.50 (initial LKR 16bn, greenshoe to LKR 20bn) offering up to 22.3% of the company. Proceeds will fund a 350 MW LNG combined-cycle plant (LKR 13.5bn) and a 50% stake in a 100 MW solar project (LKR 6bn); NDB Investment Bank, Hatton National Bank and Sampath Bank are acting as managers/bankers to the issue.

The ASPI fell 1.4% to a six-month low of 10,720 and the S&P SL20 declined 1.7% as election uncertainty weighed on the market. Banking counters and heavyweights including Commercial Bank, HNB, Sampath, John Keells and Hayleys led losses while foreigners were net sellers.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe prioritised economic stability and announced measures including a Rs.50 billion SME/MSME support fund, a new insolvency law, creation of a National Development Bank and an Economic Commission from 1 Jan 2025. He also pledged digitalisation of government services and stronger anti-corruption frameworks.

Colombo Stock Exchange fell as the All Share Index dropped 1.38% to 10,719 and the S&P SL20 fell 1.69% to 3,006 on turnover of 615 million, with election-month political uncertainty weighing on sentiment.

Roar AdX ran Meta advertising workshops for Commercial Bank (COMB.N0000), Sampath Bank (SAMP.N0000), Seylan Bank (SEYB.N0000) and National Development Bank (NDB.N0000) to improve their targeted digital advertising strategies and drive growth.

ASPI fell 4.7% and the S&P SL20 lost 6.3% last week amid election-related bearishness, with banking and blue-chip counters (HNB, JKH, CTC, RICH, VFIN) dragging the market; Renuka Agri Foods saw a large off-board block and price rise.

Colombo bourse slipped with the S&P SL20 down 0.83% and ASPI down 0.35% on turnover of Rs.1.03bn as political uncertainty and net foreign selling weighed on sentiment. Banking and blue-chip counters (notably Sampath, Commercial Bank, John Keells and Melstacorp) were main drags while Teejay Lanka and Hayleys saw notable activity.

Colombo Stock Exchange fell, with the All Share Index down 0.36% to 10,869 and the S&P SL20 down 0.38% to 3,058. Turnover was 759 million; top turnover/price moves included Renuka Agri Foods and Sampath Bank (up), HNB, John Keells and Commercial Bank (down), with a net foreign inflow of 0.37 million.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed lower: All Share Index fell 0.35% to 10,907 and S&P SL20 fell 0.83% to 3,070, with turnover around LKR 1 billion and a net foreign outflow of 25.6 million; top turnover stocks included Sampath, Hayleys, Teejay, Nations Trust and Commercial Bank.

Port City Colombo has onboarded 100+ companies as Authorised Persons (APs) as of 24 Aug 2024, with 22 designated Businesses of Strategic Importance. Several local banks including Sampath, Commercial Bank, HNB, NDB, Nations Trust and DFCC have applied to establish offshore banking branches in the SEZ under new offshore banking regulations.

Colombo market slipped for a seventh straight session as ASPI fell below 11,000 to close at 10,946 (-1.33%) and S&P SL20 lost 1.68%, with turnover Rs. 732.49mn. Commercial Bank, Sampath Bank, Melstacorp, Ceylon Tobacco, Browns Investments and John Keells were among the top negative contributors.

Port City Colombo onboarded 100+ companies as Authorised Persons by Aug 24, 2024; banks including COMB.N0000, SAMP.N0000, HNB.N0000, NDB.N0000, NTB.N0000 and DFCC.N0000 have applied to open offshore banking branches under the July 26, 2024 offshore banking regulations.

The Exporters' Association of Sri Lanka held its 27th AGM on 30 Jul 2024, electing Yohan Lawrence as Chairman and appointing HNB's Rozanne de Almeida and Hayleys' Nalaka Rathnayake as 1st and 2nd Vice Chairs; the managing committee includes listed exporters such as HNB, Sampath, Hayleys, Dipped Products, Lion Brewery, Bogala Graphite and Hela Apparel.

ASPI fell 162.1 points (-1.43%) to 11,200 and the S&P SL20 dropped 2.0%, led by declines in banks and frontline counters including HNB, COMB, LOLC, JKH and SAMP; turnover was Rs. 554.3m and foreigners were net buyers of about Rs. 49m.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed lower with the All Share Index down 1.43% to 11,199 and the S&P SL20 down 2.00% to 3,189. Turnover was 554 million with a net foreign inflow of 48.9 million; top turnover stocks included Hayleys, Melstacorp, Dialog and Sampath.

Colombo market fell for the week as the ASPI lost 1.2% and the S&P SL20 lost 1.4% amid election concerns; notable declines included PABC (-11.4%), HAYL (-3.8%), JKH (-2.6%), CCS (-2.5%) and NDB (-2.2%).