Shares fall to near 3-week low on global selloff

25 August 2015 03:07 am

REUTERS: Shares fell about 2 percent to a near three-week low yesterday, posting their biggest daily fall in nearly seven months, after foreign investors exited risky assets as fears of a China-led global economic slowdown churned world markets.

Alarm bells rang across world markets as a 9 percent dive in Chinese shares and a sharp drop in the dollar and major commodities panicked investors.

The main stock index fell 1.87 percent, or 140.08 points, to 7,331.09, its worst single-day percentage loss since February 2 and hit its lowest since August 4.
“Panic selling came in with the global market meltdown. There was heavy selling in stocks with foreign exposure,” said First Capital Equities (Pvt.) Ltd Research Manager Dimantha Mathew. “This trend will continue for the next couple of days and there could be some margin selling too as the index fell steeply in a very short period,” Mathew said.

Foreign investors were net sellers of Rs.163.6 million worth of shares on Friday, extending the year to date net foreign outflow to Rs.1.33 billion.

The day’s turnover stood at Rs.3.37 billion, the highest since July 29 and about thrice of this year’s daily average of Rs.1.16 billion. Shares in conglomerate John Keells Holdings PLC fell 2.96 percent, while the country’s biggest listed lender Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC fell 2.46 percent, dragging the index down.