COLOMBO: Sri Lankan shares closed lower on Tuesday, marking their fifth session of decline in six, although foreign investors continued to buy stocks.
Domestic investors were concerned about a possible increase in interest rate, analysts said, after the International Monetary Fund said further monetary policy tightening in Sri Lanka was desirable until there were clear signs that inflationary pressures were subsiding.
Foreign investors were net buyers of shares worth 658.9 million rupees ($4.3 million) on Monday, extending the year-to-date net foreign inflow to 24.3 billion rupees worth of equities.
The Colombo stock index ended 0.09 percent lower at 6,735.04, marking a second straight losing session.
"The turnover was good and there was a huge interest in select shares," said Prashan Fernando, CEO at Acuity Stockbrokers.
Turnover was 1.25 billion rupees, more than this year's daily average of 913.4 million rupees.
Shares of large cap Ceylinco Insurance fell 7.35 percent, while Ceylon Tobacco Company edged down 0.8 percent.
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