The Sri Lankan rupee closed weaker for the fifth consecutive session on Tuesday, as security alerts on possible further attacks after the Easter Sunday bombings weighed on investor sentiment, while stocks extended gains into the fifth day after hitting a more than six-year closing low last week. The currency fell 0.3 percent to 176.00/30 per dollar, weaker than Monday's close of 175.50/90, market sources said.
Analysts fear it could weaken further due to outflows from stocks and government securities. The island's currency lost 0.8 percent last week, but is up 4.1 percent so far this year, as exporters converted dollars amid stabilising investor confidence after the country repaid a $1 billion sovereign bond in mid-January. The rupee dropped 16 percent in 2018, and was one of the worst-performing currencies in Asia due to heavy foreign outflows.
Foreign investors bought a net 268.2 million rupees worth of government securities in the week ended April 24, the first net buying in four weeks, but they have sold a net 6.6 billion rupees worth of securities so far this year, the latest central bank data showed.
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