Sri Lankan shares rise on real estate, utilities boost

Sri Lankan shares closed higher on Monday, led by gains in real estate and utilities stocks. The CSE All-Share Index settled 0.1% higher at 21,338.69 points. Radiant Gems International PLC and On’ally Holdings PLC were the top percentage gainers on the index, up 13.7% and 10.3%, respectively. Trading volume on the index fell to 50.6 million shares from 66.5 million shares in the previous session. The equity market’s turnover dipped to 1.01 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($3.1 million) from 2.20 billion rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data. Foreign investors were net buyers, purchasing stocks worth 50.9 million rupees, while domestic investors were net sellers, offloading shares worth 982.7 million rupees, the data showed.