* The CSE All-Share index rose 1.2% to 9,444.92. The index had also closed 1.2% higher on Thursday.
* Sri Lanka's central bank is expected to keep interest
rates unchanged for a fourth-straight time as the crisis-hit
country strives to keep a cap on inflation while waiting for an
International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.
* Broadband services provider Sri Lanka Telecom Plc and liquor producer Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka
Plc were the biggest boosts to the index, rising 5%
and 8.70%, respectively.
* Trading volume rose to 93.6 million shares from 78.4
million in the previous session.
* The IMF on Thursday said Sri Lanka's recent tax rises
would help creditors regain confidence as it looks to secure a
bailout. It also cautioned that efforts to increase tax revenues
should be pursued in a growth-friendly manner while protecting
the poor.
* The country's state minister of finance said this week Sri
Lanka was hoping to return to growth in 2024.
* The equity market's turnover rose to 2.86 billion Sri
Lankan rupees ($8.51 million), compared with 1.45 billion rupees
in the previous session, according to exchange data.
* Foreign investors were net buyers in the equity market,
purchasing stocks worth 93.4 million rupees, while domestic
investors were net sellers, selling shares worth 2.78 billion
rupees, data showed.
* For a report on global markets, click ($1 = 336.1700 Sri Lankan rupees)
(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru; editing by Eileen
Soreng)
