ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka stocks continued to weaken as uncertainty around US tariffs pulled the market down market participants said.
“Uncertainty is slowing down things and creating a bit of a selling pressure,” Dimantha Mathew, Chief Research and Strategy Officer at First Capital Holdings PLC told EconomyNext.
The Colombo Stock Exchange’s broader ASPI closed down 0.28 percent, or 43.75 points at 15,555.86, while the more liquid S&P SL20 closed down 0.68 percent, or 31.65 points, at 4,589.57.
Turnover was 991 million rupees while share volume declined to 36,584,823 from the previous session.
“Market is sort of sluggish.”
US president Donald Trump has criticized Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell after he refused to lower interest rates creating uncertainty in the global market.
“Powell has always been “Too Late,” except when it came to the Election period when he lowered [interest rates] in order to help Sleepy Joe Biden, later Kamala, get elected,” Trump said on Truth Social on Monday.
Read more
Trump-Powell feud ratchets up amid Sri Lanka style anti-globalization utopia plan
The US has also decided to increase the hefty charges on Chinese oil supertankers as part of the process to penalize Asian ships.
Charges will be effective from mid-October.
“China-made supertankers sailing under non-Chinese owners or operators can expect to be hit with a surcharge of nearly $1.9 million upon calling at a US port under the new rules, according to estimates by the research arm of Arrow Shipbroking Group,” media reported.
“The sum balloons to $5.2 million for any China-owned or -operated ships, the firm said in an April 18 note.”
In Sri Lanka’s stock market, stocks with export exposure plummeted in the session.
John Keells Holdings was down 1.0 percent at 19.70 rupees, Hayleys closed 2.0 percent weaker at 130.00 rupees, Teejay Lanka fell 0.4 percent to 46.00 rupees, Haycarb traded 1.4 percent down at 78.50 rupees.
Top negative contributors to the turnover were Commercial Bank (ended 1.1 percent down at 137.00), HNB (closed 1.1 percent weaker at 295.75), Hayleys, John Keells Holdings and NDB (fell 1.4 percent to 103.50).
Most active volumes were seen in John Keells Holdings at 7,994,259 (turnover 157,203,438.60 rupees), Browns Investments at 6,722,079 (turnover 49,789,014.10 rupees), Asiri Hospital Holdings at 3,310,827 (turnover 86,743,638.00 rupees) and Prime Land Residencies at 1,263,563 (turnover 14,906,049.00).
There was a net foreign outflow of 64 million rupees.(Colombo/Apr22/2024)
Continue Reading
