Sri Lanka's bourse hit a record high on Friday on hopes of better earning in the December quarter and a further cut in lending rates, while the rupee edged down on importer dollar demand. The island's main share index rose 1.15, hitting a record intraday high of 7,275.79, surpassing its previous high of 7,204.23 from October 4. It closed 0.85 percent or 60.91 points up at 7,254.01 a record high for the second straight day. It hit a record closing high of 7,193.10 on Thursday.
It has been Asia's best performer with a 9.32 percent gain so far in 2011 after being the top performer last year with a 96 percent return. Turnover was 4.1 billion rupees ($37 million), nearly two times last year's daily average of 2.4 billion. Foreign investors were net sellers of a net 247.9 million rupees' worth shares on Friday and they have sold a net 2.02 billion rupees so far this year after selling a record net 26.4 billion rupees in 2010.