Indices at CSE close higher

Indices at the Colombo Stock Exchanged closed higher today as the investors chased up stocks to reverse a two day decline. The ASPI closed up 49 points (+1.2 percent) to end at 3,564. The more liquid MPI closed up 79 points (+2 percent) to end the day at Rs 4,085.00. Turnover for the day was Rs 2.3 billion with Environmental Resources and Investments (ERI) instruments accounting for Rs 727 million of the day’s business. ERI ordinary shares closed up by Rs 24.00 to Rs 122.00, while both the W000 and W0001 warrants closed at Rs 96.50 having gained Rs 22.25.

 

Foreign purchases were net positive for the day with purchases of Rs 409.6 million against sales of Rs 331.8 million. 88 shares were up for the day while 60 shares declined.
 

Distilleries Company closed up Rs 2.50 to end at Rs 120.00 on turnover of Rs 353 million, while Lanka Milk Foods closed at Rs 74.50 gaining Rs 4.50. LMF closely tracks the shares of Distilleries due to the 39 million shares it has in the latter. Of the other large caps, John Keells Holdings closed the day at Rs 179.00, unchanged from the previous day’s close while the Aitken Spence & Co closed at Rs 1251.25, up Rs 51.25 for the day.

Barring India all the other Asian majors were down for the day. The benchmark BSE Sensex was up half a percent on Wednesday. The Chinese CSI Index was down 3.2 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 2.6 percent. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 and Singapore’s Straits Times Index were both down 1 percent at the end of the day.  
 

First Guardian