Sri Lankan benchmark’s annual gains soften in third straight year of rise

Sri Lanka’s benchmark stock index advanced on Wednesday to post its third consecutive year of rise, with annual gains softer on-year.

The CSE All Share index .CSE rallied for the sixth straight session to end the year at 22,624.31, up 0.79% from a day ago, data from its website showed.

The benchmark rose about 42% in 2025, compared to a near-50% climb in 2024.

Sri Lankan stock markets are closed on Thursday, January 1 for the New Year. Trading will resume on Friday, January 2.

Swadeshi Industrial Works and ACL Plastics were the top two gainers in terms of percentage on the CSE All Share on Wednesday, rising 22% and 18%, respectively.

Trading volume on the index rose to 122.8 million shares from 101.4 million in the previous session.

The equity market’s turnover climbed to 4.65 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($15 million) from 3.43 billion rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.

Foreign investors were net sellers, offloading stocks worth 191.6 million rupees, while domestic investors were net buyers, purchasing shares worth 4.57 billion rupees, the data showed.