Sri Lankan shares closed lower on Friday, hurt by losses in industrial and financial stocks, although a surge in Sri Lanka Telecom Plc blunted losses.

The CSE All-Share index settled 0.6% lower at 9,093.37. For the week, the index gained 0.5%, its first weekly gain in three.

The index has declined around 25% this year as the nation grapples with its worst economic crisis in more than seven decades.

Reuters reported that the Paris Club creditor nations last month reached out to China and India seeking to coordinate closely on Sri Lanka’s debt talks, but were still awaiting a reply.

On Friday, LOLC Finance was the biggest drag on the index, dropping 3.9%.

Sri Lanka Telecom PLC soared 21.2%.

Sri Lankan shares surge as industrials, financials gain

Trading volume on the CSE All-Share index rose to 117.4 million shares on Friday, from 75.8 million shares in the previous session.

Equity market turnover was 2.35 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($6.49 million), according to exchange data.

Foreign investors were net buyers in the equity market, purchasing 54 million rupees of shares, while domestic investors were net sellers, offloading stocks worth 2.34 billion rupees, data showed.