Sri Lankan shares end higher as communication services, financials gain

Kitco Media
By Reuters
Published:
Updated:
Reuters
Feb 23 (Reuters) - Sri Lankan shares closed higher on Thursday, lifted by gains in communication services and financial stocks.
* The CSE All Share index rose 1.05% to 9,255.99.
* Broadband services provider Sri Lanka Telecom PLC and financial services company LOLC Finance PLC were the biggest boosts to the index, rising 7% and 4.90%, respectively.
* U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen at a news conference in India on Thursday said financing assurances for Sri Lanka were "most urgent". G20 countries, especially China, need to work to ease the debt overhang that is putting more than half of the low-income countries in debt distress, she said.
* Late on Wednesday, Sri Lanka's Board of Investment approved two wind power plants by India's Adani Green Energy Ltd with a total investment of $442 million.
* Trading volume on the CSE All Share index fell to 62.4 million shares from 78.8 million in the previous session.
* The equity market's turnover fell to 1.54 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($4.25 million) from 1.81 billion rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.
* Foreign investors were net buyers in the equity market, purchasing stocks worth 115.9 million rupees, while domestic investors were net sellers, offloading shares worth 1.46 billion rupees, data showed.
* For a report on global markets, click ($1 = 362.0000 Sri Lankan rupees) (Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)

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