Sri Lanka’s key stock market indices including All Share Price Index (ASPI) and S&P SL 20 Index both fell by 61.98 points or 1.07% and 110.87 points or 3.72% respectively today on 1^st March 2019 compared to the trading figures on 28^th February 2019, recording the lowest figures in a five year history. S&P SL20 last fell by 95.47 points on 13^th October 2014, which was the highest fall ever recorded in a single day. ASPI closed at 5,754.31 at the end of the trading day. Over 10.2 million shares changed hands recording over Rs. 350.5 million in turnover. Among the trades, 573,040 shares of Sampath Bank PLC (SAMP) traded in 1034 trades recording over Rs. 112.2 million turnover out of the total turnover for the day.

Analysts outlined that market witnessed a heavy fall in indices due to a major rights issue announcement by Sri Lanka’s third largest Privately owned licensed commercial bank – Sampath Bank PLC that was raising over Rs. 12.1 billion at Rs. 136 per Rights share in a bid to fulfill Basel III Tier 1 Capital requirements, whilst investors were seen shedding their stakes in Sampath Bank. The share price of Sampath Bank fell by Rs. 36.20 per share falling almost by over 15.6% to close at Rs. 195.70. Followed by the market sentiment all bank shares witnessed a heavy fall in their share prices except for Seylan Bank PLC, Union Bank PLC and Amana Bank PLC. Analysts noted that many Banks in the country are yet to fulfill Basel III capital requirements whilst Basel IV requirements are yet to touch the Banking industry of Sri Lanka in the years to come.

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S&P Sri Lanka 20 

-  Reporting by Devendra Francis