Colombo shares up for second consecutive day 

Colombo shares were up for the second day running on Tuesday as retailers collected small to mid cap stocks buoyed by the notion that a new regime was taking over, analysts said. 

Blue chips, led by JKH, dominated turnover with heavy foreign selling mirroring Monday’s trade by 11.30 am. There was high net worth individuals buying blue chips as well. 

Monday’s gain was the highest in nearly four years and turnover was a six-month high and today this record will be renewed, analysts said. Prior to Monday’s gain, the ASI was down 8.4 per cent and the S&P SL fell sharply by 18 per cent.

Mahinda Rajapaksa's appointment as Prime Minister by President Maithripala Sirisena replacing incumbent Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has sent positive signals to the traders, some stockbrokers said. 

The All Share Index (ASI) was up by 0.85 per cent by 11.30 am to stand at 5,994.48 points with S&P up by 1.69 per cent to stand at 3,110.38 points on a Rs. 529 million turnover. (DEC)