Telecom sector boosts market

BOURSE: The market reversed its downward trend continued for a couple of days with both indices gaining considerably.

Although the turnover level was not as high as the few previous days analysts said a turnover close to half a billion rupees indicated the investor interest in the market activities.

The All Share Price Index gained 11.58 points to close at 2,989.72 points and the Milanka Price Index improved by 28.91 points to close at 4,156.88 points. The market turnover was Rs.483 million.

Telecommunication sector was the main contributor to yesterday's turnover with over 3.5 million Dialog shares and 1.2 million Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) shares being traded. The SLT was up by one rupee to close at Rs. 37.75 while Dialog closed flat at Rs. 27.50.

There was foreign interest in Dialog with the bulk of the trading took place as foreign to foreign transactions. Traders said there was interest in blue chips pushing the Milanka up. Analysts expected the market to end the week on a high note.

Meanwhile, some analysts expected the Central Bank to raise its key interest rates in order to meet the rising inflation.

However, Angelo Ranasinghe of Martleet Mallory Stock Brokers said investors can expect high returns in the equity market as the interest rates are relatively low compared to the high inflation level.

(CK)