Tuesday 1 February 2011

* Srilankan Stock Market Watch - Trading Tuesday - 01 Feb, 2011


Monday Sri Lankan shares closed up 0.22-pct.




The All Share Price Index closed at 7,190.77 up 0.22percent (15.9 points) while the Milanka Price Index of more liquid stocks closed at 7,121.28, down -0.18 percent (12.99 points).

Turnover was 3.2 billion rupees, according to provisional Colombo Stock Exchange statistics.

Laugfs Gas Plc (LGL) sustained its position on top as the top contributor to the turnover with an amount of Rs.433.2mn. Furthermore LGL turned out to be most actively traded counter during the day. In addition Colombo Fort Land and Building Company Plc (Rs.385.6mn) and Citrus Leisure Plc (Rs. 244.2mn) made notable contribution to the daily turnover.

Diversified sector, Power and Energy sector and Manufacturing sector were the mostly contributed to sectors to the daily turnover.

Meanwhile Singer Finance Plc, Ceylinco Securities & Financial Services Plc and Ceylon Grain Elevators Plc were the aggressively traded counters during the da


All Share Price Index Movements - 01.02.11


Milanka Price Index Movements - 01.02.11


There was a net foreign inflow of 21.8 million rupees as foreigners bought 191.2 million rupees worth of shares and sold 169.4 million rupees.

* Sri Lanka inflation 6.8-pct in January

Sri Lanka's inflation in January 2011 rose 6.8 percent from a year ago after rising 6.9 percent in December 2010, the central bank said.

Prices rose 1.3 percent during January 2011 with the index rising 231.2 in the month, it said in a statement.

The seasonally adjusted, moving average of the Colombo Consumer Price Index also rose to six percent in January from a year ago, and up from 5.9 percent in December 2010.

The moving average is a lagging indicator averaged over 24 months.

Annual average inflation was 3.4 percent in 2009.

* Sri Lanka stock website shuts after regulator warning

A Sri Lanka stock investment website has closed after warnings against misleading investors by the capital markets regulator, whose officials said they were cracking down on such sites.

An official at the Securities and Exchange Commission said they warned the people operating the website, saying misleading advice that influence share prices could violate SEC regulations.

The operator of the site, investnow.lk, decided to close last week after the warning by the regulator.

A notice posted on the website said it was "temporarily suspending" the forum in order to "rework" its strategy and create a "professional entity that will continue to help investors navigate the great depths of the market and act to be a credible guide with the help of you all, the community."

It said it would act in a manner that "best serves the community . . . and be free from manipulative control through education and creating awareness."

The site offered to refund members for any services paid for that are still valid.

The SEC official said they were also monitoring other websites that offer advice on investing in the stock market which has been on a bull run since the island's 30-year ethnic war ended in 2009.

The SEC was also investigating stock brokers believed to be behind some of the websites that offer advice to investors, he said.

The Colombo bourse was Asia's second-best performing market last year