Colombo Stock Exchange Market Review – 10th Jan 2017

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Colombo Stock Exchange Trade Summary 10-Jan-2017

Colombo stock market ended lower on Tuesday amid increase in treasury yields for the sixth straight week. All Share index lost 2.93 index points or 0.05% to end the session at 6,152.59 while S&P SL20 index decreased by 8.97 index points (-0.26%) to close at 3,462.31.

Market premier blue-chip, John Keells Holdings (closed at LKR 140.50, -0.6%) led the index down along with banks namely, Commercial Bank (closed at LKR 140.00, -1.3%), Sampath Bank (closed at LKR 263.00, -0.6%) and Hatton National Bank (closed at LKR 222.50, -1.1%).

Daily market turnover was LKR 345mn. Top contributor for the day was Chevron Lubricants with LKR 345mn underpinned by two crossings of 1.2mn shares at LKR 156.00. Notable contributions were witnessed in Melstacorp (LKR 19mn), John Keells Holdings (LKR 12mn) and Adam Capital (LKR 11mn) respectively.

Market breadth was neutral where 54 stocks advanced while 52 stocks declined. High investor activity was seen in First Capital Holdings, following the announcement of an interim dividend. Company declared a dividend of LKR 2.00 per share. Hayleys Fabric, Overseas Reality rights and John Keells Holdings were among heavily traded counters.

Foreign investors were net buyers with a net foreign inflow of LKR 18mn. Net foreign inflows were seen in Melstacorp (LKR 16mn), Hatton National Bank (LKR 8mn), Marawila Resorts (LKR 1mn) while net foreign outflow was mainly seen in Chevron Lubricants (LKR 4mn). Foreign participation for the day was 63%.

Meanwhile, at Treasury bill auction today, rates advanced across the board. Three month yield advanced to 8.97% (+19bps) and six month yield increased by 10bps to 9.89% while one year Treasury bill rate advanced by 9bps to 10.31%. CBSL offered LKR 24bn worth Treasury bills and the auction was oversubscribed by 2 times with bids received amounting to LKR 47.3bn. It was decided to accept LKR 23.9bn worth of treasury bills.

Source:LSL

Sri Lankan shares end marginally lower; T-bill yields hit 4-mth high

Reuters: Sri Lankan shares erased early gains to end marginally lower on Tuesday as yields on short-term government securities rose in a weekly auction amid uncertainty over government's monetary and budget policies.

Yields on treasury bill auctions rose 9-19 basis points at a weekly auction on Tuesday to its four-month high, rising for the second straight session after the central bank governor signalled reduced intervention to defend the currency.

The Colombo stock index ended 0.05 percent down at 6,152.59, slightly above its lowest closing since April 4, hit on Thursday. Last week, the index fell 0.64 percent and was down 9.7 percent for 2016, its second straight annual decline.

The day's turnover was at 344.5 million rupees.

"Interest in the market was very low as the current uncertainty is keeping investors away from equities," said Dimantha Mathew, head of research at First Capital Equities (Pvt) Ltd.

"There was no huge selling pressure. Because of rising market interest rates, new buyers won't be coming in while the existing investors will hold on."

Foreign investors bought a net 18.5 million rupees ($123,333) worth of equities on Tuesday. However, foreign investors have been net sellers to the tune of 798.5 million rupees so far this year.

They were net buyers for a third straight session on Tuesday, after offloading shares for five sessions through Thursday.

Shares in biggest listed lender, Commercial Bank of Ceylon Plc, fell 1.34 percent while DFCC Bank Plc fell 1.90 percent and Teejay Lanka Plc fell 3.11 percent.

Conglomerate John Keells Holdings Plc fell 0.64 percent. 

($1 = 150.0000 Sri Lankan rupees) 

(Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Editing by Vyas Mohan)

Colombo Stock Exchange Market Review – 09th Jan 2017

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Colombo Stock Exchange Trade Summary 09-Jan-2017

Colombo bourse edged up on Monday amid higher foreign participation. All Share index closed at 6,155.52 with a gain of 2.50 index points or 0.04% while 20-scrip S&P SL index advanced by 9.03 index points (+0.26%) to end at 3,471.28.

Price appreciation in Teejay Lanka (closed at LKR 45.00, +3.7%), Hemas Holdings (closed at LKR 99.90, +1.9%) and Chevron Lubricants (closed at LKR 158.00, +1.9%) contributed positively to the index performance. Gainers outweighed the losers 66 to 56, while 66 stocks remained unchanged.

Daily market turnover reached LKR 844mn, boosted by few negotiated deals in blue-chips. John Keells Holdings was the top contributor to the turnover with LKR 281mn underpinned by two crossings of 0.8mn shares at LKR 141.00.

Chevron Lubricants (LKR 185mn), Nestle Lanka (LKR 100mn) and Dunamis Capital (LKR 83mn) were among top contributors. Off-the-floor dealings were recorded in Chevron Lubricants (0.95mn shares at LKR 157.00), Nestle Lanka (0.05mn shares at LKR 2,000.00) and Dunamis Capital (3.0mn shares at LKR 27.50). Aggregate value of crossings accounted for 52% of the turnover.

High investor preference was witnessed in two textile manufacturing companies, Teejay Lanka and Hayleys Fabric amid media speculations on GSP+. Teejay Lanka closed at LKR 45.00 with a gain of 3.7% while Hayleys Fabric closed at LKR 16.80 (+12.0%). John Keells Holdings, Access Engineering and Alliance Finance witnessed relatively high investor activity.

Meanwhile, in opening hours of trading, 85% of rights shares of Overseas Reality were traded at LKR 0.10 per share. Despite the transaction, voting share closed at LKR 20.10 (+0.5%) and right share closed at LKR 0.20.

Foreign investors were net buyers with a net foreign inflow of LKR 153mn. Net foreign inflows were seen in John Keells Holdings (LKR 267mn), Hatton National Bank non-voting (LKR 12mn), Sampath Bank (LKR 9mn) while net foreign outflow was mainly seen in Dunamis Capital (LKR 83mn). Foreign participation for the day was 60%.
Source: LSL

Sri Lankan shares end flat as policy uncertainty continues to weigh

Reuters: Sri Lankan shares were little changed on Monday after hitting a nine-month low last week as uncertainty over the government's monetary and budget policies continued to weigh on the market.

But foreign investors were net buyers on Monday for a second session after five straight sessions of net-selling through Thursday.

They bought a net 152.7 million rupees ($1.02 million) worth of equities on Monday, the highest since Dec. 8. However, foreign investors have been net sellers to the tune of 817.03 million rupees so far this year.

The Colombo stock index ended 0.04 percent up at 6,155.52, slightly above the lowest since April hit on Thursday. Last week the index fell 0.64 percent and was down 9.7 percent for 2016, its second straight annual decline.

The day's turnover was at 843.6 million rupees.

"Net foreign inflow is a good sign and it will help regain the lost confidence," said Dimantha Mathew, head of research at First Capital Equities (Pvt) Ltd.

Yields on treasury bill auctions rose 5-6 basis points at a weekly auction on Wednesday, a day after the central bank governor signalled reduced intervention to defend the currency.

Shares in Hemas Holdings Plc rose 1.9 percent, while Teejay Lanka Plc gained 3.69 percent and Ceylon Tobacco Company Plc added 0.33 percent. 

($1 = 149.6000 Sri Lankan rupees) 

(Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)

Sri Lanka aims to lure 2.5mn tourists in 2017

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has set a target of attracting 2.5 million tourists in 2017, despite difficulties posed by the partial closure of its international airport and the withdrawal of the national carrier from key markets.

The island got 2,058,000 tourists in 2016, up 14 percent from the year before, Minister of Tourism Development, Christian Religious Affairs and Lands John Amaratunga told a news conference.

Although last year’s number of visitors was below the government's target of 2.2 million tourists, Amaratunga said it was the highest ever and augured well for the industry.

However, he said, the numbers were far below that of competing destinations like Thailand and Malaysia, which draw 25-30 million tourists annually.

Sri Lanka’s earnings from tourism in 2016 were estimated to be around $3.5 billion, he said.

“We expect to do better this year despite the partial closure of the airport for about three months, from 6 January to 5 April,” Amaratunga said. “That’s a tremendous setback because it will be the height of the tourist season.”

SriLankan Airlines had also pulled out of some of the best tourism markets like France and Germany, Amaratunga said.

“But other airlines have increased the number of flights,” he added.

Sri Lanka will also launch a long-delayed international tourist marketing campaign this year, Amaratunga said.

Sutheash Balasubramaniam, managing director of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Board, said growth is expected mainly from India and China, which have emerged as the biggest sources of visitors, with high-growth rates.

“This year we also plan to increase our digital marketing, especially in leading markets in Europe like the United Kingdom, France and Germany,” he said.

Sri Lanka’s Laugfs buys third LPG carrier vessel for USD2.9mn

(LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Laugfs Maritime Services has purchased its third Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) carrier vessel for 2.875 million US dollars.

The company said in a stock exchange filing that the vessel earlier named as “Lady Martine” will be renamed as “Gas Courage” under the Sri Lankan flag.

Laugfs Maritime Services private limited is a fully owned subsidiary and the maritime arm of the Laugfs Gas PLC, which operates with Board of Investments of Sri Lanka approval to carry out a business of sea cargo operation services.

In 2015 October, Laugfs Maritime Services said it acquired their second LPG ship to provide logistic support for the growing LPG demand in the country.

This second acquisition was made with investment of 6 million US dollars and has a capacity to carry 3,500 M/tons of LPG.

Its maiden acquisition of LPG ship MT “Gas Challenger”, with a capacity to carry 3,500 m/tons of LPG, was made in 2014 marking its entry into maritime business.

Laugfs Maritime provides ocean freight services and related logistics to the LP gas downstream industry in the region.

Colombo Stock Exchange Market Review – 06th Jan 2017

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Colombo Stock Exchange Trade Summary 06-Jan-2017

Colombo bourse snapped the five day losing streak amid thin market activity on Friday. Main index edged up by 5.50 index points or 0.09% to end at 6,153.02 while S&P SL20 index gained 15.27 index points or 0.44% to close at 3,462.25.

Blue-chips, Ceylon Tobacco (closed at LKR 810.00, +1.2%), Melstacorp (closed at LKR 58.20, +1.6%) and Ceylon Cold Stores (closed at LKR 750.00, +1.3%) contributed positively to index performance. However, losers outweighed the gainers 61 to 42, while 84 stocks remained unchanged.

Daily market turnover was merely LKR 238mn. Top contributor was John Keells Holdings (LKR 41mn) followed by Hatton National Bank (LKR 32mn), Chevron Lubricants (LKR 26mn) and Commercial Credit & Finance (LKR 16mn).

High investor activity was seen in textile manufacturers, Teejay Lanka (closed at LKR 43.40, +1.6%) and Hayleys Fabric (closed at LKR 15.00, +0.7%). Chevron Lubricants, HVA Foods and John Keells Holdings were among heavily traded counters.

Foreign investors were net buyers with a net foreign inflow of LKR 27mn. Foreign participation was 33%. Net foreign inflows were seen in John Keells Holdings (LKR 33mn), Hatton National Bank (LKR 17mn), Commercial Bank (LKR 11mn) while net foreign outflow was mainly seen in Chevron Lubricants (LKR 22mn).
Source: LSL