Net foreign selling has continued in every session this month, though a single stock accounted for most of the day’s foreign buying.
Foreign investors were net sellers on the Colombo Stock Exchange for another session, posting a net outflow of LKR 29.3 million. That is small in isolation, but it extends a persistent pattern: net foreign outflows total LKR 57.7 billion for the year to date and LKR 376.1 million for October so far.
On the day, foreign investors bought LKR 86.2 million of shares and sold LKR 115.4 million. All four sessions this month have ended in net foreign selling. In the nine sessions to October 6, only two recorded net inflows, and those were small.
A single stock dominated the buying
The day’s figure was shaped by two counters. AMSL (Asiri Surgical Hospital) recorded the largest net foreign purchase at LKR 70.0 million, about 81% of all foreign buying on the day. Excluding that one stock, foreign investors would have been net sellers of about LKR 99 million. The next-largest net foreign purchase was TAP, at LKR 7.5 million.
On the selling side, COMB (Commercial Bank of Ceylon) saw net foreign selling of LKR 59.8 million. Its total turnover was LKR 76 million, so foreign investors accounted for most of the trading in the counter. DIAL was next at LKR 23.5 million, followed by CIC (LKR 12.9 million) and JKH (LKR 6.7 million).
Government securities holdings
Foreign holdings of Treasury bills and bonds were LKR 198.75 billion as of October 1, up 0.92% on the previous week. That remains about 6.9% below the LKR 213.40 billion recorded on September 10.
Business Impact
Foreign flows matter beyond the stock market. They affect market depth and liquidity, and they are one of several factors watched in assessing pressure on the rupee. The rupee itself moved only marginally on the day, at LKR 330.62 per US dollar against LKR 330.60 earlier. The ASPI was little changed, rising 0.03% to 20,650.23, so the continued selling is not showing up in headline index moves. For businesses, the relevant point is the persistence of the outflow, not the size of any single day’s figure.
Key Numbers
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Net foreign flow (day) | -LKR 29.3 Mn |
| Foreign buying / selling (day) | LKR 86.2 Mn / LKR 115.4 Mn |
| Net foreign flow, month to date | -LKR 376.1 Mn |
| Net foreign flow, year to date | -LKR 57.7 Bn |
| Largest net foreign purchase | AMSL, +LKR 70.0 Mn |
| Largest net foreign sale | COMB, -LKR 59.8 Mn |
| Foreign holding of government securities (Oct 1) | LKR 198.75 Bn (+0.92% WoW) |
| Foreign holding of government securities (Sep 10) | LKR 213.40 Bn |
| USD/LKR | 330.62 |
Source Attribution: Colombo Stock Exchange market data, Central Bank of Sri Lanka statistics and publicly available market information.