Indices managed to close higher, helped by gains made on
Nestle and Ceylon Tobacco Company. Few private deals were seen on Nestle,
Hatton National Bank and National Development Bank which dominated today’s
turnover. Retail participation remained on the sidelines as most of the highest
contributors to turnover were comprised of blue-chips.
ASI gained 12.92 points (0.24%) to close at 5,417.78, MPI
gained 7.28 points (0.15%) to close at 4,913.42 and the S&P SL20 index
gained 5.10 points (0.17%) to close at 2,963.21. Turnover was Rs. 488.9Mn.
Top contributors to turnover were Hatton National Bank with
Rs. 169.2Mn, Nestle with Rs. 72.8Mn and National Development Bank with Rs.
68.1Mn. Most active counters for the day were People’s leasing & Finance,
Ceylon Hotels Corporation and Nestle.
Notable gainers for the day were Free Lanka Capital Holdings
up by 9.1% to close at Rs. 2.40, Malwatte Plantations up by 4.4% to close at
Rs. 4.70 and Nestle up by 3.9% to close at Rs. 1,510.00. Notable losers for the
day were Kelani Valley Plantations down by 9.1% to close at Rs. 78.20, Capital
Alliance Finance down by 7.4% to close at Rs. 17.60 and Three Acre Farms down
by 4.8% to close at Rs. 45.60.
Cash map for today was 76.17%. Foreign participation was 54%
of total market turnover whilst net foreign buying stood at Rs. 36Mn.
