Sri Lankan shares hit a record high on Monday as low interest rates and good company earnings fuelled buying across the board, traders said. The Colombo Stock Exchange's All Share Price Index .CSE hit an all-time high of 4,612.76 points, surpassing its previous peak of 4,581.80 hit on Friday. It closed 51.43 points or 1.1 percent firmer at 4,612.76.
The index is up 36.3 percent so far in 2010, making it Asia's best performer. Turnover was 1.7 billion rupees ($15 million), well above last year's daily average of 593.6 million. "Buying across the board moved the market," said Hussain Gani, associate director at Asia Securities in Colombo, adding the market warranted a consolidation sooner rather than later before its next advance.
Shares in conglomerate John Keells Holdings JKH.CM rose 1.9 percent to 204 rupees while mobile phone operator Dialog Telekom DIAL.CM jumped 2.9 percent to 9 rupees. Ceylon Tobacco CTC.CM rose 3.3 percent to 310 rupees. Heavy retail buying has helped drive the bourse's price-to-earnings ratio to 22.57, bourse data showed, compared with about 11 a year ago, when Sri Lanka ended a 25 year war.
Foreign investors sold a net 1.77 million rupees worth of shares on Monday, data showed. They have sold a net 14.3 billion rupees worth of shares this year. The central bank on Monday said it will re-issue $275 million worth of development bonds to pay debts raised to fund a raft of infrastructure projects. [ID:nSGE65D04L] The rupee LKR= closed a little weaker at 113.55/113.58 a dollar from Friday's 113.50/113.54, in sluggish trade, dealers said.
@ REUTERS: By Ranga Sirilal
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